Forward Progress
by Romantique The Original
Summary: MAJOR SPOILERS from Season 4. Tami and Eric have been put through the ringer this season. Wouldn't you love to see them smile? At least for awhile? This fan fiction takes place at the end of Season 4 before Season 4 airs on NBC.
1. Chapter 1

Title: Forward Progress (1/18)

Author: Romantique

Email:

Classification: Eric/Tami Drama/Angst

Rating: T for some language.

Summary: MAJOR SPOILERS from Season 4. Tami and Eric have been put through the ringer this season. Wouldn't you love to see them smile? At least for awhile? This fic takes place at the end of Season 4 before Season 4 airs on NBC.

Disclaimer: MAJOR SPOILERS from Season 4.

Legal: These characters do not belong to me. I'm just a fan and have not made a dime. Please email me to obtain permission to post.

**forward progress:**

the location to which a ball carrier has advanced the ball, even if he was pushed backwards after getting there.

_At the Taylor home …_

Tami Taylor naturally opened her eyes before the alarm went off and woke in a wonderful mood. Between her husband's miraculous Friday win over his former Dillon Panthers and yesterday's satisfactory conclusion to her own horrid feud with the District, Tami had slept better than she had in a long, long time and suspected her husband, Eric, had, too. The fortunate turns of events made for an absolutely perfect ending to their long Thanksgiving weekend.

Lying in bed next to her, a little while later, Eric rolled towards her and opened his eyes with a smile on his face. "Mornin'," he drawled. Their passionate interlude only hours before was still fresh on his mind.

"Good morning, Hon," Tami cooed, snuggling in closer until her face was lying against her husband's t-shirted chest. "I was just about to get up to check on Gracie and put on a pot of coffee. Do you want to go to church with me this morning?"

Taking his wife in his arms, Eric was still smiling. "Sure. I'll go to church with you, but do you think we could go to the later, 11 o'clock service?" And he brought his head down and began placing soft little kisses on her neck, being careful not to scratch her with his overnight scruff.

After the torturous, lonely football season the two of them had endured, Tami was thrilled her husband wanted to make love to her again so soon, even if it meant going to the later service.

After some time later, Tami showered and dressed and made her way into the kitchen to start breakfast. Their oldest daughter, Julie, was already up with little Gracie. After Tami put the coffee on and began making waffles, a special request from Gracie, a freshly showered and still smiling Eric joined them in the kitchen. After saying his _'Good Mornin's'_ to his girls, he made his way over to his wife and gave her a sultry, romantic kiss which Tami happily returned.

Normally, Julie would have vocally complained about her parents' public display of affection in her presence as being_ 'gross' or 'too much information.'_ However, so worried had she been about her parents over the past several months, this time, she smiled with approval upon seeing her Mom and Dad express their love to one another. It did her heart good.

After the kiss, Eric energetically volunteered to cook up some bacon and poach some range free eggs to go with the waffles. Julie set the table, poured juice for all, and sliced some fruit. She couldn't help but think that it had been a long time since her family had a real Sunday breakfast before going to church together. It felt good to see her parents smiling and happy and to know all was well, once again.

As the family ate their breakfast, Julie could not help but notice the way her parents gazed into one another's eyes or that her mother placed her hand in her father's at the table. She was planning on bringing up the subject of _Habitat for Humanity_ again, but decided it better to give her parents some time to themselves. For if she was going to leave her family, she would feel much better leaving them happy.

_Later that day, at Church …_

After the service, the church congregation gathered outside to greet one another and exchange pleasantries before heading home.

Buddy Garrity walked over towards Eric with a serious look on his face that Eric always feared. "Hey, friend. Did you see the paper this morning?" he asked.

"Naw, I didn't. And if you've got any bad news to tell me, I don't want to hear it," Eric smiled. Although Buddy Garrity was a great guy, he could be a thorn in Eric's side more often than not. "My family and I are goin' to enjoy this beautiful day." He looked up at the big blue, Texas sky. Before giving Buddy even the slightest chance to spoil this wonderful day, Eric quickly said, "I'll talk to you later, Buddy." And he turned on his heel to go and find his lovely wife, a few yards away.

Buddy decided to let it be for now. It had been a long while since he'd seen a smile on his friend's face, and he decided to allow Eric to continue celebrating his big win against the Dillon Panthers a little while longer.

Walking up behind Tami, Eric placed his arm around her shoulder, as she reached up and grabbed his hand in hers. Even though she was making small talk with some of her friends, the touch of Eric's hand reminded her that they had finally physically reconnected, were plugged in to one another ... and it felt good.

"Would you all excuse us?" Eric interrupted the superfluous chatting with an exaggerated smile on his face. "We've got plans this afternoon, and we're gonna need to get goin'."

Smiling through her teeth, an unsuspecting Tami picked up on Eric's cue and played along. "Oh, yes. We really do need to get moving. Bye y'all." As the two walked, still hand-in-hand, over to find Julie and Gracie, Tami leaned over to her husband and quietly asked, "Do we _really_ have someplace we need to be?"

Eric smiled and gave her hand a loving squeeze. "I've got somethin' in mind." Upon spying his daughters, he called, "Hey, Jules! Could I see you for a second?"

Julie came right over with her baby sister in tow. "Yeah, Dad, what's up?"

Keeping his voice down low, he asked, "Would you do me a huge favor and watch Gracie for a couple of hours so that I can take your mother somewhere this afternoon? It will only be for a few hours, I promise."

The pleading in her father's eyes made Julie smile. "Um, sure. I'll watch her. No problem."

Eric kissed his oldest daughter on top of her head. "Thank you, Sweetie. I really appreciate this."

"You're welcome," she nodded. Whatever was going on with her parents, she hoped it would continue forever.

Eric drove the family home; then, he and Tami went inside and changed out of their church clothes and into more casual, weekend attire.

"Where are we going?" Tami asked again once back inside Eric's SUV.

"You'll see," he answered with a mischievous look on his face. And he leaned in to give her a lingering kiss at the stop light.

Tami was really enjoying this day.

Eric drove them outside of Dillon, holding Tami's hand in the car. At one point, he brought her hand up to his lips and kissed her fingers. Tami smiled at him. The love inside Eric's rig could have filled a football stadium.

Soon, Tami noticed they were heading toward the lake, to the same spot she had taken him to reminisce about their first romantic date. Sure enough, he pulled into the same parking lot.

"Awww, honey," Tami smiled. "Thank you for bringing me back here. This is such a beautiful spot." She seemed pleased to be there, and also pleased that he remembered her romantic gesture.

"You really love this lake, don't you, Babe?" he smiled back, placing his rig into _'Park' _while turning off the ignition.

"Yes, don't you?" she asked.

"I do," he nodded. "I really do."

Tami smiled. "It's so peaceful here. I love being near water and nature," she continued. "And I _love_ being here with you."

The two fell into a soulful kiss in the front seat of the car. "I love you," she sighed.

Eric smiled. Grabbing her hand and giving it a squeeze, he said, "There's somethin' else I want to do."

"Okay," she returned his smile, a bit perplexed. Her husband was just full of surprises today.

Eric started his rig and drove up a road, up a hill, ending up at a secluded quaint, brick home with a beautiful garden, overlooking the lake. After he stopped the car, he said, "C'mere."

Tami followed him out of the car, but she still didn't understand what her husband had up his sleeve.

He walked over to her, took her face in his hands, and gazed into her eyes. "This house is for sale." He continued in a very level, measured tone, "It sits on five acres, has a huge kitchen and den, plenty of room to entertain. It's big, but not too big. It has three bedrooms, two baths, a small office, and … it's zoned for East Dillon."

Tami looked at her husband's face in disbelief.

"And Babe," he went on, saving the best part for last, "there are _'his and her closets' _in the master bedroom." He continued to gaze deeply into her blue eyes.

He touched her heart by quietly listening to every word she had ever said over the years about her dream house when she thought he wasn't listening, and Tami's eyes began to fill with tears. She leaned in and kissed him. She kissed him hard.

"Don't you want to take a look? Go inside?" he asked in between kisses.

"Honey, I don't need to. It's perfect! I can feel it. It's perfect," she laughed with her arms held tightly around her husband's neck. "I can picture us down at the lake …"

Hugging her around her waist, Eric smiled and said, "When the weather is warmer, I'm gonna take you skinny dippin' with me in that lake."

And Tami went on, "... with the girls and our grandchildren. …"

"Grandchildren?" Eric teasingly echoed. "Naw, I don't want to talk about grandchildren. You're makin' me old before my time. I want to talk about you ... and me ... swimmin' in the moonlight." Eric took great glee in painting his own picture of their future.

"... And I can just see team parties down at the lake," she went on. "Oh, Honey, we could get a boat!"

Now that Tami was excited, Eric allowed himself to become excited, too. "I looked at the house yesterday, and I've already met with the realtor. This is a bank foreclosure that just came on the market, yesterday. We could do this, Tami. We could rent our house out until the market improves, which is probably what we should do. It's no surprise there's a shortage of rental housing for folks wanting to move into Dillon High's boundaries. We rent our house out at a premium and, so long as the market improves over the next few years, we sell our house at a fair market value and then, we could pay off this lake house in five years. It feels as if it's meant to be." He gazed into her eyes again. "We wouldn't be upside down. I wouldn't lose sleep over this house. I'd sleep just fine."

After a beat, Tami started to jump up and down like a kid. "Yes, yes, yes! Oh, Eric, yes! Let's do it!"

"Alright," he smiled. "Let's go over to the realtor's office. Missy's waitin' for us."

Tami surprisingly leapt up into his arms, and the two held each other tight.

"Just a minute, Hon," Tami said, looking at the house, looking at the lake view while still in his arms. "Let's take this all in for a minute."

"We can take all the time you want," Eric affirmed, with a joyful laugh.

And the two stood arm in arm, allowing their future to sink in. It was a radically different future they saw for themselves than the one they saw when overlooking the dilapidated football field at East Dillon High for the very first time.

_Dillon Realty …_

The Taylors were met at the door of the realty office by long time acquaintance, Missy Aubrey.

"Tami ... girl, didn't you absolutely love it?" Missy asked in a very high voice.

Smiling, Tami answered in a voice almost equally high, "What's not to love?"

"I knew it," Missy gushed. "How long have y'all been looking at houses? I knew I would get you one day. I think this is the absolute perfect property for you."

"Well, this one is a God-send," Eric said. "It's still on the market, isn't it?" The look on his face turned to one of worry.

"Yes," Missy smiled. "I called on it as soon as you said you were coming over. So, you say you are ready to make an offer?"

"Yeah," Eric shook his head with confidence. "Let's do it."

"This is so exciting, Coach, Tami," Missy continued to gush. She proceeded in helping them write the offer in her computer. Then, when all the "I's" were dotted the "T's" were crossed, she printed it out and collected their signatures, scanned a couple of the signed documents, and hit the "Send" button.

"Well, we should hear something from the bank first thing in the morning," Missy was still smiling. Then, she said, "This almost makes up for that bad Tim Riggins deal."

"What?" Coach looked perplexed, as did Tami.

"Oh, haven't you been reading the paper this weekend?" Missy asked. "Tim Riggins pled guilty for fencing the parts of stolen cars. His lawyer made a plea bargain for him, but he's still going to have to spend at least a year in the Big House."

"Oh, my God," Tami gasped, placing her hand over her mouth. "He was just over at our house on Thursday for Thanksgiving."

"So, ya'll didn't know anything about this?" Missy secretly got a thrill at the possibility of being the first one to tell them the news. She was such a gossip.

"Naw," Eric looked sternly into his realtor's eyes. "I can assure you this is the first we've ever heard of it."

"I wish I could say the same," Missy said, not catching Eric's drift. Lowering her voice, she whispered, "Tim Riggins came in here and bought some land off the Interstate. Paid cash for it. Guess it's pretty obvious now where that money came from. But you didn't hear anything from me."

"Uh, no. We didn't hear anything from you," Eric said with a slight edge of annoyance. "I'm not comfortable talkin' about this. Could we please change the subject?"

"I'm sorry. Of course we can," Missy went back to gushing. "You all are putting an offer on your dream house. That's what we should be talking about."

The Taylors were more than happy to change the conversation, although this news about Tim lay heavy on their minds, most heavily on Eric's. Then suddenly, it hit him ... this must have been what Buddy wanted to tell him at church this morning.


	2. Chapter 2

Title: Forward Progress (2/18)

Author: Romantique

Email:

Classification: Eric/Tami Drama/Angst

Rating: T for some language.

Summary: MAJOR SPOILERS from Season 4. Tami and Eric have been put through the ringer this season. Wouldn't you love to see them smile? At least for awhile? This fic takes place at the end of Season 4 before Season 4 airs on NBC.

Disclaimer: MAJOR SPOILERS from Season 4.

Legal: These characters do not belong to me. I'm just a fan and have not made a dime. Please email me to obtain permission to post.

_On the drive home …_

Eric became very quiet and pensive on the way home. Tami reached across the seat for his hand, and he instinctively took hers.

"Are you thinking about the offer?" she asked with concern in her voice.

Eric sighed, keeping his eyes on the road. "Naw, I have a good feelin' about that house. Don't you?"

"Yes, I do," she smiled. "In a strange way, I think we were led there. Thank you for not buying any of those custom jobs I showed you over the years."

He looked over at her, and he smiled. "They didn't feel right. This one does, but I wanna make sure you're happy. I've always wanted you to have your dream house."

"Sugar, like I've told you before … wherever you are … and our girls are, _that_ is my dream house," she said, giving his hand a squeeze. "But the lake house, it feels like _us_, doesn't it? I mean, it feels like me, _and_ it feels like you. The girls will love it."

"You'd better be prepared for another round with Julie, really soon, on _Habitat for_ _Humanity_," Eric warned. "She's not one to give up on her dreams, either. We can't expect her to give up her dreams."

"But how does she even know if _Habitat_ is her dream or just a whim?" Tami laughed. "I mean, she came up with it as soon as she came up with Ryan."

Eric countered with, "That's not entirely true. Julie's always wanted to see the world, to help people. What if we compromise?" Eric suggested. "Let her go to this trainin', give her half the money to show our faith in her, but tell her she has to come home and graduate before she proceeds. And, she'll still need to make her car payments while she's away." He paused a moment and then, continued, "After going to the trainin', she may find it's not what she thought it was."

"Or that it's _exactly_ what she wants," Tami didn't sound convinced. "I don't know."

"The way I see it," Eric continued, "her mind is made up. She's already gone. It's a matter of whether or not we're supportin' her decision. I don't see that we have much of a choice here."

"Well," Tami sighed, giving a little credence to what he said.

"There are worse things our daughter could be doin' than buildin' houses for the poor," he winked at her. "I think we've gotta let her go, so she can come back."

Tami squeezed Eric's hand. "But what if she doesn't want to come back?"

Eric smiled. "Let's go pick up the girls and show 'em the house before it gets dark. Then, I'll take you all out for dinner." He looked over and winked at his wife. "Don't worry, Babe. Julie will come back. Heck, she might even decide she doesn't want to leave. If I was a senior in high school … I would have loved to live on the lake, take my vacations on the lake … bring my Honey to the lake."

Tami laughed, "I'm going to bring my Honey to the lake."

"That's right, Babe," Eric smiled and let out a mischievous, little laugh.

_At Applebees …_

"I'm sorry there wasn't any place to eat in Dillon on a Sunday night other than Applebees," Eric apologized to Julie. "I'm sure this is the last place you want to be on your day off."

"No, it's okay," Julie said, happily eating her baked potato, salad, and corn bread. She had the vegan items wired on the menu. "I've had a really nice day, today."

"Hasn't it been, though?" Tami smiled. "So honestly, Sweetie, what did you think of the house?"

"I think it's great." Julie's eyes sparkled. "I've always loved it at the lake. Do you really think you are going to be able to get it?"

"We'll know soon enough," Eric said, in between bites of his New York Strip. Changing the subject, he began. "I promised you another conversation about _Habitat for Humanity_. And I must say that you were just awesome in holdin' up your end of the bargain."

Julie smiled. "Thank you, Daddy." She loved being treated with respect from her parents. She was equally glad that her Dad was the one to bring up the subject.

Tami joined in. "Yes, you've been noticeably very grown up during these difficult months. You just pitched right in and helped. Your father and I want you to know that your help was noticed and very much appreciated."

"Your mother and I discussed what we can and cannot do. This house brought everything into focus," Eric said, taking a pull off his beer. "We think that you should go ahead and make plans to attend the trainin' … _but_, we're not going to sign the papers for you to go out on assignment with _Habitat_ until you come back and graduate from East Dillon. Then, you are free to go with our blessin'."

"We want you to know that by allowing you to take time off from school and go to the training, we are showing our confidence in you to make good decisions," Tami continued. "We can pay half your training fee; however, you will need to continue to make your share of your car payments for the time you are away at the training."

Julie listened to every word. And then she said, "This is good," Julie remarked, feeling that her parents were making a concerted effort to let go of her. "I'll talk to my manager tomorrow about a leave of absence from work. I sorta gave them a heads up a couple of weeks ago."

Relieved that the discussion was that easy, Tami added, "Great! You know, Sweetie, if we get that house, you can show me how to plant some organic vegetables this spring."

"Yeah," Eric said. "You don't want us toxifyin' your baby sister with store bought food, now do you?"

Julie smiled a big smile. "Sure. I would _love_ to show you how to plant some organic veggies for Gracie."

From the high chair, Gracie piped up with, "Mmmmmm. Good veggies."

"You've been tryin' to get your baby sister on your vegan bandwagon?" Eric flashed a smile.

Julie tried to stifle her smile. "I don't want you two to have such an easy time while I'm away. Plus, I'd like to be remembered as the _'good daughter.'_"

"Honey," Tami reached over and stroked the long blonde hair of her oldest girl, "you already are."

_The next morning …_

As Tami was directed by the Superintendent to stay home with pay until her transfer was officially received by East Dillon High, Eric decided to call in sick. He was too preoccupied with their offer on the house and wanted to be available to quickly counter offer if necessary. The football season was now over for the Lions, so this was the perfect time for him to be taking some time off.

Eric made breakfast for his girls and drove Gracie to daycare. When he arrived back home, Tami was already up and showered. She was in the kitchen, pouring herself a cup of coffee.

"Did Julie get off to school okay?" he asked, hugging his wife from behind.

"Yeah she did. She's so happy," Tami remarked. "I don't know what to do with a happy teenager in the house."

"I don't know either," Eric laughed, "but I'm sure we could get used to it."

"Do you want another cup, Hon?" Tami offered to pour him some coffee.

"Oh, no thank you," he shook his head. "I've already had two cups and can't believe how antsy I am."

"Well, the bank doesn't even open for a couple of hours," she looked at the clock. "How would you like to throw on some running clothes and drive out to the lake for a run? We could explore, and we'd have our cell phones with us. It might take the edge off."

Still standing behind her, he said, "I like that idea," and he gave her another hug.

_At the lake …_

Mr. and Mrs. Taylor ran the north perimeter of the lake, occasionally double checking their phones to make certain they were still in cell phone range to receive calls. After the second mile, Tami indicated she needed to stop and rest for awhile. Her husband was happy to oblige.

They slowed to a walk to cool down and catch their breath.

"Oh, I needed that," Eric panted. Then, he let out a deep exhale. "I thought I'd crawl out of my skin waitin' back at the house."

Patting the sweat off her face with a small towel, Tami said, "It's amazing what burning off some adrenaline can do."

Straight ahead, there was a boat launch and some benches, and the Taylors headed in that direction. Tami pulled out her water and took a good couple of sips.

"Here, Hon," she passed the bottle to Eric.

He, too, took a few good sips. Taking a seat on the bench, he looked at his watch and announced, "We've made it to 11:00. If we don't hear anything by noon, I'm gonna start callin."

"That sounds fair," Tami took the water bottle back and drank some more. As her breath became more even, she decided to kill some time by changing the subject. "I finally had time to read the paper this morning. Did you have a chance to read it, too?"

"I did," Eric was still trying to regulate his breathing. "That's really somethin', isn't it?"

They didn't have to spell it out ... both knew of what the other spoke, even though the story was now well buried inside the Monday paper.

"Looking back, did you notice anything strange?" she asked. "Because I thought Thanksgiving was very strange. I couldn't quite put my finger on what was wrong, but now knowing this, Mindy and Tim were very, very quiet. I even thought I saw Mindy crying when Billy gave that strange speech. I chalked her tears up to hormones, but now, I'm not so sure."

"Billy's speech suddenly makes a whole lot more sense," Eric nodded. "Tim didn't make it to a lot of practices the past few weeks. He volunteered his time with me, so I didn't think much of it."

"Although he can be very charming, I've always thought there was something wrong with that kid," Tami lamented. "As his guidance counselor, he never did make the best decisions."

"Yet, I have seen that young man do some of the most honorable things," Eric let out a sigh. "You just don't see that quality in a young person very often. Honor usually comes with age."

Tami put her hand on her husband's knee. "It's real sad. I know you've always had a soft spot for Tim."

Eric placed his hand on top of hers. "I'm havin' a hard time reconcilin' it and need to find out more before I come to any conclusions. I know one thing, I cannot believe Billy didn't know anything about it."

Tami asked, "Are you saying that Billy was involved? Do you think Tim would take the fall for his brother?"

Eric looked at his wife. "I'm not sayin' anything. I don't know enough. But if you're askin' me if Tim would take the fall for someone else, the answer is yes … if he cares about the person. I've seen him do it several times. That's some of what I mean about him bein' honorable."

Tami nodded her head. "I remember you telling me that he let you think he was the one who took Julie out drinking after you jumped to the wrong conclusion. That he did that to protect Julie."

"And to protect us," Eric nodded. "He did the same thing with his Dad once, and another time with Smash. Those are only the times that I know of. I'm sure there are others."

About that time, Eric's cell phone rang. He quickly pulled it out of his pocket and looked at the screen. "It's Missy," he said to Tami.

Tami grabbed his hand and held on tight.

"Hello," he spoke into his cell phone. "Uh, huh. Are you kiddin' me?" Then, a huge smile came over Eric's face. He mouthed to Tami, _"It's ours."_

Tami's hand immediately shot over her own mouth to stifle a shriek of joy.

"Alright, we'll meet you at your office at 3:00," Eric continued. "And thank you, Missy."

After disconnecting his phone, he said, "It's goin' into escrow as soon as we sign the papers this afternoon and give them the earnest money. Can you believe it?"

"Oh, Eric," Tami was so happy, she almost cried. And the two, sweat-drenched Taylors hugged one another. "I guess we need to go back to the house, get showered, grab some lunch, and go to the bank before 3:00."

"But before we head back, I want to do somethin," Eric said. And he walked up to a nearby birch tree behind the bench, took out his pocket knife and carved "ET + TT" into the bark and carved a heart around the initials.

"Oh, Hon, that is sweet, so romantic," Tami was touched by her husband's continued playfulness.

"Babe, our new place, this lake, it _is_ romantic," he winked at her.


	3. Chapter 3

Title: Forward Progress (3/18)

Author: Romantique

Email:

Classification: Eric/Tami Drama/Angst

Rating: T for some language.

Summary: MAJOR SPOILERS from Season 4. Tami and Eric have been put through the ringer this season. Wouldn't you love to see them smile? At least for awhile? This fic takes place at the end of Season 4 before Season 4 airs on NBC.

Disclaimer: MAJOR SPOILERS from Season 4.

Legal: These characters do not belong to me. I'm just a fan and have not made a dime. Please email me to obtain permission to post.

_The next day …_

The Taylors had now entered into a 30-day escrow, barring a satisfactory house inspection that was to take place in the next 24 hours. Their realtor put them in touch with a property management firm that could take care of finding a suitable renter for their house. The next thing that needed to happen was packing, packing, and more packing.

Before Julie could leave for her _Habitat_ training, she had to go through her stuff and make sure that anything she didn't want to take to the new place was sorted, to be thrown out. As she would be leaving home soon anyway, she took this as an opportunity to downsize and let go of some childish things she had been holding onto.

Meanwhile, Eric decided it was time to meet Buddy for a beer and bring him up to speed on the latest in their lives.

"That's fantastic, Eric," Buddy emoted upon hearing about the new lake house. "The lake is going to be a great place to hold the annual party at the Coach's house. I bet Tami's really happy."

"We're both really excited about it. You know how long Tami's wanted more space to entertain," Eric nodded. Then, after a beat, he changed the subject. "When we were at church and you wanted to tell me about somethin' in the paper, were you referrin' to what happened to Tim Riggins?"

"Yeah," Buddy nodded and then took a pull from this Lone Star beer. "I always knew that idiot was heading for trouble. I'm just thankful that my Lyla didn't stay with him or she would have been right there in the middle of it."

"Do you know anything more than what was reported in the paper?" Eric asked.

"Not really," Buddy answered. "You know, if only Tim would pull his head out of his hind end, the town of Dillon would be willing to help him out. But that sure is a big _'if.'_ I think some time for him to think in prison might do him some good. He needs to learn there are consequences to his stupid, get-rich-quick schemes."

"Do you think Tim did this all by himself?" Eric asked, knowing Buddy also knew the cast of characters.

Buddy sighed. "It would be kind of hard for him to pull something like this off by himself."

Then, it was Eric who took a pull on his beer. "As soon as this house is well into escrow, I'd like to visit Tim. Wanna go with me?"

"I don't know," Buddy looked puzzled. "I'm conflicted. As Lyla's father, I don't ever want to see that boy again. But as a Panther State champion, I have a moral obligation to help other ring holders. I just need to figure things out."

"I understand," Eric nodded. "It's true Tim's made some bad choices, but he can also be one of the most honorable young men I've ever met in my life."

"Eric," Buddy laughed. "I can honestly say that I've _never_ seen that side of him."

"Well, I have," Eric seemed a little irritated, although he wouldn't have been pleased if it had been Julie dating Tim. "I've seen it on at least on three separate occasions … enough to know it wasn't a fluke."

The two men sat in silence for a moment until Eric finally said, "I understand that you'd need to think about it. Get back to me, will ya'?"

"Thanks, Eric," Buddy nodded. "I will."

"I'll catch you later?" Eric asked standing up from the barstool.

"You bet," Buddy nodded. "Hey, again, congratulations on your new house."

"Thanks," Eric said with a smile.

_Returning home …_

Eric returned home to find the girls going through the contents of their entertainment center. Gracie was watching cartoons on the television.

"Are you all already packin'?" Eric was surprised to find their living room becoming dismantled.

"Hi, Hon," Tami walked over to him and gave him a kiss. "Missy called. The inspection went just fine. There are a few minor things such as the bathrooms need the new shut-off switches to be up to code, but nothing major … no deal breakers. She emailed you a copy of the inspection report for you to take a look at." And she added, "Oh, and the property management firm has 3 applications to rent this house. They're doing all the credit and background checks. Then, all we have to do is give them the final go."

"Wow, that's great news," Eric smiled. In almost disbelief, he asked again, "So, you all are already started on the packin'?"

Julie answered with her hands on her hips, "We decided to go through and make three piles: 1) trash, 2) donate, and 3) keep. Dad, you have tons and tons of game tapes. Are you going to keep _all_ of these?"

"Please don't touch my game tapes," Eric raised his eyebrows. "I'll pack those."

"I told you so," Tami spoke out of the side of her mouth to Julie.

"No problem," she responded to her parents. Besides, there were tons of CDs and DVDs to go through. Many of them were hers. "Hey, Dad, I got the okay from Applebee's to take a leave of absence so I can go the training. And I made my reservations, too." Julie was smiling.

"That's great, Sweetie. Sounds like we all got good news today," he gave another quick kiss to his wife. "I'm gonna go take a look at this inspection report, and then I'll be back to help you pack."

"Did you eat?" Tami asked her husband. She could tell by their kiss that he'd had a beer.

"Naw, but I can make a sandwich," he said, and he left to take a look at his email.

As short time later, Eric returned and went into the kitchen to make himself a ham and Swiss sandwich. "Would anyone else like one?"

"We ate, Babe," Tami said, sitting cross-legged on the floor, going through the DVDs on the bottom shelf. "But maybe you could put a bag of popcorn in the microwave?"

"Popcorn!" Gracie said. That word got her attention.

"I can do that," Eric said, and he put the bag in and set the oven. A moment later, he set his sandwich and a glass of iced tea on the dining table and then, handed the bowl of popcorn to Tami with a small bowl just for Gracie.

"I saw Buddy Garrity tonight," Eric said, and then, he took a bite of his sandwich.

"Is that where you were?" Tami asked.

"Remember when he wanted to talk to me about if I had read the Sunday paper?" Eric's mouth was about half full.

"Yeah," Tami was listening.

"I figured he wanted to talk to me about Tim, and I was right," he said and then, swallowed.

"I heard about it at school today. Everyone was talking about Tim this morning," Julie reported.

"What are they saying?" Tami wanted to know.

"That Tim was taking stolen cars and selling the parts. That's called trafficking, and it's against the law," she factually reported like the good journalism student she was. "And that Tim is in jail."

Tami popped some kernels of the corn in mouth. "What you heard is right."

"I can't believe he would do something like that," Julie shook her head. "I like Tim. I thought he was a nice guy."

"That's what Buddy and I were talkin' about," Eric said from the table. "I decided that I'm gonna go see Tim. Get the story straight from the horse's mouth."

Tami and Julie both stopped what they were doing and turned to look at him, in silence.

"What? He's either made a terrible mistake, or he's no damn good," Eric took another drink of the tea. "I need to know which one it is."

Tami added, "Or he's an idiot who can't learn from his mistakes. I hate to say it, but there are many teachers who have been able to do nothing with Tim because he didn't care about the consequences."

"Maybe he's never _had_ any real consequences before," Eric answered, taking another bite of his sandwich."

Julie said under her breath, "He's got them now."

"I'd just like for him to look me in the eye and tell me what happened, and why he did it," Eric said. "I'm not gonna let him off easy. I think he'll be embarrassed to even talk to me."

"Oh, I think he will, too, Hon," Tami said. "He looks up to you."

"If he was in some kinda trouble, I don't understand why he didn't come to me," Eric shook his head.

"Maybe he didn't want to involve you," Tami said.

Julie then added, "Or maybe he knew you would tell him not to do it, Dad."

Eric's gut reaction was that Julie was right.

"He quit school to work with his brother and make some money," Eric recapped. "I don't understand why he needed more money."

Tami continued packing as she talked. "I wonder if it had anything to do with what we learned on Sunday?"

Eric flashed Tami a look, conveying for her not to say anything more. Tami winced, catching herself. It was too late.

"What did you learn?" Julie asked without skipping a beat.

Eric dropped the crust of his sandwich on his plate. "Nothin'. We learned nothin'," Eric closed the subject airtight. "That's enough Tim talk for tonight. Now, where would you like me to start packin', Babe?"

Julie knew she unintentionally struck a raw nerve and decided it best not to pursue this subject, not now.

Handing him an empty box, Tami said, "Why don't you start with your game films, Hon. And mark on the box that they are going into your new home office." She smiled.

"Are you banishin' me to that small office to watch game films in the new house?" Eric was half serious.

"No, I'm banishin' all those tapes to the small office," Tami explained. "You can watch TV out in the den. Because if you don't, I'll never see you … and I like seeing you." She smiled at him.

Eric winked at her. What a difference a week made.

_Later that night …_

As Eric and Tami lay in bed, Tami snuggled close to her husband. "When are you going to visit Tim?" she asked in a low voice.

Eric grabbed her hand in his. "I don't know. I've heard there's a procedure to go through to get on the list. He's at a middle level security prison in Midland County."

"Where did you find that out? Have you talked to his brother?" Tami turned to him.

"Naw," Eric said. "Buddy found out the information for me. You know ol' Buddy. He knows everyone."

"Would you like for me to go with you?" she asked. She couldn't imagine it would easy to visit someone in prison.

Putting his arm around her, holding her tight, he answered, "I appreciate the offer, Babe, but this is something I want to do alone." Somehow, he felt that Tami didn't understand.

Stroking the length of his forearm, she said, "Just promise me that you don't feel any responsibility for what happened to him, Hon."

"I don't know what I feel," he said. "I don't know enough to feel much of anything. That's what I've gotta find out."

Still stroking his forearm, Tami said, "You're a father figure to so many at risk boys like Tim. You have to know that you can't save them all. But you do save some of them. And I don't want you ever to forget that."

Looking off in the distance, Eric nodded.

"I thought about what you said," Tami sat up. "About not passing judgment on Tim until you knew more. You're right. And I was wrong to pass judgment on him until I know more."

Eric looked up at his wife.

"I like Tim, too," she nodded. "I think I was just angry at him for doing this, not only to himself, but also to you."

Eric reached up and stroked his wife's blonde hair. "I know I'm not responsible for what he did." Then, a little smile came over his tightly closed lips. "Our house passed inspection. The few notations on the report are easy fixes."

Tami reached down and began gently stroking the side of Eric's face. She loved the way he loved the boys he coached. She loved his strong heart. After he had changed the subject of their conversation, she leaned down to kiss him and began to make love to her husband.

_The following Tuesday_

_Texas Department of Corrections, Midland County …_

Thanks to Eric's Pastor, he was placed in contact with the Department of Corrections and given the procedure to be approved as a visitor at the prison in Midland. Visitations were allowed once a week, on Tuesdays, with a total visiting time of 45 minutes.

Eric took the day off to drive out to see if he could visit Tim Riggins. Upon arrival, he was directed to the visitation area where he had to empty his pockets and go through a metal detector. Once through the security check, he was again directed to wait in a room with about 50 other people who were there to visit their loved ones. This was the first time Eric had ever visited a prison, and he hoped that Tim would be the last person he would ever need to visit there.

Looking at the clock on the wall, it was 10 minutes before 11:00. He tried to think of what he could possibly say. A minute later, he saw Billy Riggins enter the room. The older of the Riggins brothers looked pale, as if he didn't feel very well.

"Billy?" Eric walked up to the man.

Seeing Eric out of context threw Billy for a minute. Then, he gave Eric a look of recognition.

"Coach Taylor, what are you doing here?" Billy asked. There was not a smile on his face, just a look of not feeling well.

"I wanted to try and see Tim," Eric answered, very matter-of-factly. "I understand he only gets a total of 45 minutes a week."

"Uh, yeah, but I think it would be good for him to see you, Coach," Billy nodded. "Why don't you go first, and I'll take what's left. I can see him anytime."

"Oh," Erin stalled for a beat so he could take in the awkwardness of the conversation, I promise I won't take the entire time," he finally said with a nod. "Thank you for lettin' me go in."

Billy still looked white as a sheet. "No problem, man. You're like family, Coach Taylor."

Eric looked at the young man before him. Billy looked pretty rattled. "How are you holdin' up?" Eric asked.

Billy let out a sigh. "It's been rough. It's been real rough."

Not knowing what to say, all Eric could say was, "I'm sorry. I know how close you two are."

The man Eric knew to be quite talkative had nothing much to say. It was as if it took everything Billy had to keep himself composed. He looked up at Eric with his lips tightly closed, and nodded to acknowledge what Eric said. He could barely look Eric in the eyes.

About that time, a guard came to the door and bellowed out instructions about what would happen if those instructions were not followed to the letter.

"I'll tell Tim you're here, okay?" Eric offered.

"Yeah," Billy swallowed. "You have a nice visit with him," Billy said with his hands stuffed in the pockets of his jeans, and he turned and walked away.


	4. Chapter 4

Title: Forward Progress (4/18)

Author: Romantique

Email:

Classification: Eric/Tami Drama/Angst

Rating: T for some language.

Summary: MAJOR SPOILERS from Season 4. Tami and Eric have been put through the ringer this season. Wouldn't you love to see them smile? At least for awhile? This fic takes place at the end of Season 4 before Season 4 airs on NBC.

Disclaimer: MAJOR SPOILERS from Season 4.

Legal: These characters do not belong to me. I'm just a fan and have not made a dime. Please email me to obtain permission to post.

_Texas Department of Corrections, Midland County …_

Eric was directed to a long table where he took a seat, along with other visitors, where they all waited for the inmates to be brought in. After a few minutes, men in prison uniforms began to stream into the room. A few of the prison guards were peppered around the room. Finally, after many inmates, Tim Riggins walked into the room also wearing the prison's standard grey issue uniform. His trademark long, unkempt hair had been noticeably buzzed short, making him appear to be much younger than his nineteen years. Looking around the room for his brother, he eventually locked eyes with Eric. The look on Tim's face changed from a blank expression to one of unwelcome surprise.

"No," Tim uttered, shaking his head as his former coach approached him. "I do not want you to see me in here."

"Well, you're here," Eric said, his jaw clenching tight. This was going to be harder than Eric thought. "And I'm here. It is what it is, Tim."

Tim hung his head and let out a deep sigh. "I can't do this, Coach. Not with you."

Eric couldn't help but notice that Tim was the youngest inmate in the room. It was very hard for him to see one of his own in … this place. Tim Riggins couldn't possibly belong in prison. "Look, I care about you. Even if you don't right now, son … I do," Eric's resolve was firm.

"I care … about what you think of me," Tim looked up and answered the man in a flash of fury in his eyes. "And I can't be here and see the disappointment in your eyes. Not from you, Coach. Of _all_ people, not from you." Then, his eyes focused back down.

"That is not disappointment you see," Eric fired back. "Hell, Tim. I don't even know what happened. I don't know what to think. I want you to tell me what happened."

"What happened is … I screwed up. Big time," Tim said in hushed tones. "I tried to make some big money, fast. I knew it was wrong, but I did it anyway."

"Why?" Eric asked, pleading with his eyes. "Why did you feel you needed that much money so badly? Tim, why didn't you come to me if you were in some kinda trouble?"

"Because I'm too old to come to you, anymore, Coach. I'm a grown man, now," Tim stated.

"Oh, son," Eric shook his head. "Don't you know? Even at my age, I have to ask for help all the time. Where did you get this idea that you don't need any help from anyone? Don't you understand that knowin' when you need help or advice is a sign of maturity, not weakness?"

As soon as those words left his mouth, Eric had the thought that, of course, Tim didn't know. Billy probably didn't know it, either. They didn't have a father around to teach them these crucial life lessons.

Tim glared at Eric, his wall was still up.

"The way I see it, is you have a choice," Eric glared back. "You can either use this experience and learn from it to do better, or you can give up and probably end up in prison for the rest of your life. This is a turnin' point for you, son. Everyone is entitled to make one big mistake in life, but you usually are allowed only one. Would you at least think about that?"

"It's over, Coach," Tim said. "My life as I knew it … over."

"Then, trade it in for a better one, Tim," Eric argued. "If you don't like your life, you have the power to change it. You're going to be paroled at some point and get another chance."

The two men just stared at one another for a moment, as if they were in a stalemate.

Finally, Eric broke the silence. "What makes a man, a man, is that a man learns from his mistakes. He doesn't repeat the same one, ever again. Do you understand what I'm sayin'?" Eric waited for a response.

"Did you ever make that one big mistake in your life, Coach?" Tim asked.

Eric averted his eyes and took in a deep breath. "If you're askin' me if I've ever been given a second chance, the answer is yes." Then, he again locked eyes with Tim. "Someone once rolled the dice on me when no one else would."

In an instant, the intensity in Tim's face began to fade. All of a sudden, he appeared open to hearing more.

"I tell you what. Why don't I come back next week and finish the story?" Eric raised an eyebrow. "Your brother is waitin' to see you. He was kind enough to let me see you first."

Tim looked down.

"Alright?" Eric brought his head down to Tim's level to make eye contact.

Slowly, Tim nodded his head. "Yeah , Coach."

"You think about what I said, okay?" Eric was relieved to see that at least he'd made a small crack in Tim's resolve. "I'll see you next week."

_The Taylor home …_

The School District finally made the decision to transfer Tami over to East Dillon as Head Counselor beginning the first day of the second semester. Until then, she was placed on paid leave. The time off coincided perfectly with the move, and hopefully would give time for the emotionally charged backlash to die down. She could pack up their house and move into their new lake home before the New Year. In fact, she was scheduled to report to East Dillon High on Monday, January 4th.

Eric arrived home from visiting Tim to find Tami in the garage.

"Hey, Babe," he said, and he walked over to the far side of the garage to give his wife a quick '_hello'_ kiss.

"Hon, would you please hand me that box?" she asked, pointing to a large box on a top shelf. "I can't reach it."

"Sure," he said as he grabbed the box, and he sneezed as the dust from the box went into his nose. He placed the box at Tami's feet.

"Bless you," she said. "How was your visit with Tim?"

Taking his handkerchief out of his kakis, Eric blew his nose. The dust in the garage was getting to him. "Honestly? It was tough seein' him in there."

"I can't even imagine," she shook her head. After a moment, she asked, "Are you okay?"

"Yeah, I'm fine," he said as convincingly as possible. Then, he shared, "I'm goin' back and to see him again, next week. Do you want me to open the box?"

"Yeah, would you, please?" she asked, listening to what he had to say.

Eric ripped the tapped box open where he found bills and papers from 1995. "Looks like this box can be shredded." And he marked the box with the year.

Tami nodded in agreement.

"I saw Billy Riggins for a minute," he shared. "It was strange ... like he was there, but then again, it's was as if he was not really there."

Tami asked Eric if he would hand her another box from the upper shelf.

"I've never visited a prison before," he continued while raking his fingers through his hair. "It was surreal."

"How was Tim?" Tami gently probed, finding that the box now in front of her contained a set of dishes they never used. She proceeded to mark _"Donate"_ on the side of the box and took it to the far corner to join other boxes of 'stuff' to be taken to _Good Will_.

"I don't know how Tim was," he said. "It was also like he wasn't really there."

"Well, Hon," Tami looked up, "Tim and his brother are probably in shock. Maybe even denial. Remind me tonight to show you the '_Kubler Ross Stages of Grief'_diagram. When people experience loss, they go through defined stages of grief. Tim is experiencing a terrible loss … he just lost his freedom. I think if you'd take a look at the diagram, what's going on with Tim and his brother might make a lot more sense to you."

"Really?" Eric asked her.

"Yes, really," she said, walking over to him and putting her arms around him. She gave him a hug. "Not only are Tim and his brother experiencing a loss, everyone around them also experiences the loss. It's like concentric circles with Tim at the center. The amount of loss one experiences is determined by how close one is to Tim."

Eric put his head on Tami's shoulder. "Are you sayin' I'm experiencing the loss?"

"I don't know, Hon. What do you think?" she asked, holding him tighter.

He sighed. "I couldn't believe he was in there. Does that mean I'm in denial?"

Still hugging her husband, she began to rub circles on his back. "Hon, you said you were still trying to reconcile all this, and you just used the word _'surreal.'_ You said you've never been inside a prison before. You might still be in the initial stages of shock. And at this point in time, that would be a perfectly normal place to be." She continued to rub circles on his back. "Sounds like Tim and his brother are also in the initial stages."

Eric welcomed his wife's touch. "It feels like someone died," he whispered, his eyes closed tight, his head still on his wife's shoulder. "Someone close, like family."

"I know," she said, and she held him like that for a long time.

Later, before dinner was ready, Eric went out into the backyard to place a call.

"Hey, Jason? Coach Taylor. How are you doin'?" Eric asked his former quarterback.

"I'm doing just fine, Coach," Jason Street answered. "Working hard, but doing just fine. How are you?"

"Doin' fine," Eric answered. "Hey, I'm callin' to find out if you've heard from Tim lately."

"No, I haven't talked to Tim since the summer," Jason answered. "Why? Is something up?"

"Yeah," Eric sighed into the receiver. "And I'm afraid it's not great news."

"Is Tim okay?" Jason sounded panicked.

"Oh, Jason, Tim is physically okay. I didn't mean to scare you," Eric was apologetic. "But he's gotten himself into some bad trouble. There's no easy way to tell you that Tim is in prison."

"In prison? For what?" Jason sounded very far away.

Eric told Jason the whole, sad story. Then, he told him about the land purchase Tim made.

"Texas forever," Jason uttered.

"What?" Eric asked, not understanding the phrase.

"Texas forever," Jason repeated. "Tim and I have always had a dream of buying a big chunk of Texas real estate and living large in Texas. Of course, I had a son, married Erin, moved to New York. I moved on from that dream, but I guess he didn't."

"Well, that may explain the land purchase," Eric remarked. "But it doesn't explain how he went about raisin' the money."

"Think about it, Coach," Jason said. "How else is someone like Tim Riggins going to come up with enough money to fund his dream? I'm not saying what he did was right. Clearly, it wasn't. But I could see him doing something like that. You know, the ends justifying the means?"

"I saw him earlier today," Eric reported. "He looked like a scared kid. He was the youngest inmate I saw in there. I know what he did was wrong, too. But it was really sad seeing him in there."

"Coach. You cannot tell me that somewhere deep inside, you didn't think that Tim might not end up in jail one day, can you?" Jason Street had known Tim Riggins for a long, long time. "I mean, I love Tim like a brother, but there's a part of me that is not surprised to hear this news."

"Yeah, that's what Buddy says," Eric reacted to what he had just heard.

"Lyla and Buddy Garrity, me … we've all seen a side of Tim that he probably didn't show to you," Jason tried to explain Tim Riggins. "He looked up to you. You were like a Dad to him."

Eric still couldn't buy that he could be such a bad judge of character. "Yeah, maybe. I don't know."

Jason gave a nervous chuckle. "I'm sorry. I don't mean to come off as uncaring or unfeeling where Tim is concerned. Honestly, upon hearing this news, I'm mad at him for doing something this stupid. And as you know, I've been mad at Tim many times before and for good reasons. Let me sit with this for a few days and call you back. I guess I need some time to process it."

"Alright, that sounds reasonable," Eric said. "I'm goin' back to visit him again on Tuesday. He's allowed visitors once a week on Tuesdays for a total of 45 minutes a week."

"Wow," Jason said. "That puts his situation into focus, doesn't it? I'll call you this weekend, if that's okay with you."

"Anytime, Jason," Eric said. "You know you're welcome to call me anytime." And with that, he disconnected the call.

After dinner, Eric asked Tami to print out the diagram she was talking about for him. She gladly did so and gave him an explanation of how the paradigm worked. And then, he went into Gracie's room to read her favorite bedtime story, three times in a row, before she finally went to sleep in his lap.

"_Leave it to Gracie to pull me out of my funk,"_ Eric said to himself, as he lifted his baby into her bed. He positioned the side rail and kissed her goodnight.

Then, he headed off to bed with his wife.


	5. Chapter 5

Title: Forward Progress (5/18)

Author: Romantique

Email:

Classification: Eric/Tami Drama/Angst

Rating: T for some language.

Summary: MAJOR SPOILERS from Season 4. Tami and Eric have been put through the ringer this season. Wouldn't you love to see them smile? At least for awhile? This fic takes place at the end of Season 4 before Season 4 airs on NBC.

Disclaimer: MAJOR SPOILERS from Season 4.

Legal: These characters do not belong to me. I'm just a fan and have not made a dime. Please email me to obtain permission to post.

_East Dillon High Athletics Department_

Buddy Garrity stopped by to see Eric after school to discuss his latest football priority. Popping his head into Eric's office he asked, "Hey, do you have a few minutes?"

"What brought you here today?" Eric rubbed his eyes, tired from working on planning paperwork.

"I've got a kid I think you and I need to go and take a look at before another school gets word of him," Buddy smiled. "He might just be our next star Running Back for next season. This kid is _fast_, and he's built like a moose ... and he's zoned for East Dillon."

Eric looked up. "Speakin' of fast and built like a moose, I saw Tim Riggins earlier this week." After an uncomfortable silence, Eric added, "I'm still waitin' for you to get back to me."

Buddy remained noticeably uncomfortable with the subject of Tim Riggins, yet it was clear to Buddy that Eric was not going to it let go. "How's he doing?" Buddy asked, mostly out of politeness.

"How the hell do you think he's doin', Buddy?" Eric asked. "He's a nineteen-year-old kid incarcerated with a bunch of inmates who are much older and much, much harder than he is."

"Eric, I'm sorry Tim is in such a bad spot, but he has no one to blame but himself," Buddy huffed.

"You know what?" Eric huffed back. "So long as these kids are scorin' points and running the football for you, you're all for 'em. But when they're not, you have no use for 'em anymore?"

"Eric, you know that's not true," Buddy defended his honor. "How many times have you and I gone out of our way to help Smash or Voodoo, Santiago or Reyes? We've helped Saracen and Jason and countless others."

Eric just stared at his friend. "You've helped everyone but Tim." Eric nailed him. "I know you have a history with Tim because he dated Lyla. And to tell you the truth, I don't think I could handle him datin' my daughter, either. But Tim is a Panther, a championship ring holder, and he's in trouble."

Buddy looked back at his friend who was using his own Panther words of loyalty against him. He couldn't think of anything to say in response. He was becoming angry.

Finally, Eric decided to try a different approach. "I've always known you to be optimistic. It's one of your better qualities. I guess I'm havin' trouble understandin' this cynicism you have when it comes to Tim. Did somethin' happen between you two that I don't know about?"

"Tim has some kind of charisma that my beautiful, smart daughter fell for," Buddy took a seat in front of Eric's desk. "I almost lost my daughter, who I love more than my own life, to someone who has no respect for the gift of life he's been given. A lot of people have tried to help him over the years. Lyla really tried to help him for a long time. Jason Street tried to help him. Contrary to what you said, I tried to help him. Tim has been given opportunities you could only wish would come to some of these disadvantaged Lion players, and he blew them all off … like he blew off going to college. You can't care about someone who doesn't care about himself. Someone like that will take himself down, along with anyone who's close by. I just thank God that my Lyla wasn't close by."

Eric listened to Buddy's truth. "I hear what you're sayin'. What you're sayin' is true. Tim doesn't think enough of himself to put himself first. But I've seen him put other people first, often to his own detriment. He's still a misdirected, nineteen-year-old kid."

Letting out a deep sigh, Eric continued. "We encourage Tim and other players to sacrifice themselves for the team. We exploited that boy, Buddy. You and I did that."

"By that definition, all the players are exploited, Eric," Buddy answered. "And you know that's not true."

Raking his fingers through his hair in frustration, Eric added, "I don't know. Maybe Tim needs the kind of help that you and I can't give him. I just don't think he should be thrown away like yesterday's trash."

Looking at his friend, Buddy could only hope that Eric had not fallen prey to Tim's charisma.

_Enroute to Texas Department of Corrections, Midland County …_

The events of the past few weeks were forcing Eric to compartmentalize his life. The escrow and packing the house were progressing nicely. The closer the move-in date came, the more exciting the prospect of breaking open a bottle of champagne on New Year's Eve in the new place became. He and Tami were closer than they had been in quite some time. Eric was most grateful to have his loving, affectionate marriage restored. On Sunday, Julie left for Florida to start her Habitat training. This, too, was exciting. She would be home in three weeks, right before Christmas and the move. She was gone just long enough for everyone to really miss one another.

After a long year of everything being stuck in the aftershock of losing his job at Dillon High, the lives of the Taylors were finally moving forward in a good direction … and it felt really good.

By contrast, Eric was taking another sick day to drive out to the prison to see Tim. Talk about being stuck in an aftershock. Tim was literally isolated from everything he knew, and other than his brother and Eric, no one else really seemed to care.

Jason Street called Eric on Saturday morning, as promised. Jason very honestly told him that he was still angry with Tim, too angry to be ready to extend a hand. He also told Eric that he hoped in time, some of his anger would dissipate, but there were no guarantees. The other coaches who knew Tim were concerned, but at an arm's length. He already well knew how Buddy felt about Tim. Then, there was Tami. She was supportive of anything Eric wanted to do, but she was also very wary of getting emotionally invested in someone who had a long history of making bad decisions, someone who didn't seem to learn from his mistakes. While she hadn't completely cut bait on Tim, she was closer to the opinions of all the others than she was to her husband's.

Not surprisingly, when it came to Tim Riggins, Eric felt isolated, too. He didn't understand why no one cared about this kid. Was everyone else right? Was he wrong? He began to doubt himself. Then, he recalled a similar experience with Matt Saracen when he was in high school. Everyone felt bad for the kid, but not bad enough to lend a hand.

The town of Dillon was filled with hypocrites. The high schools, the District, the Churches, the Boosters ... they were all full of them. After the past year, one thing Eric knew for certain ... no one in this town loves you when you're down. No one loves a loser. He found that out first-hand when he lost his job at Dillon High. For a long time, no one would give him the time of day. As a grown man, it was difficult to deal with that kind of rejection and isolation, yet come out the other side, intact. Eric almost didn't come out intact. Therefore, he couldn't fathom how difficult it would be for a kid to deal with this kind of cynicism and rejection.

And so, Eric drove to the prison searching his mind and his heart for words that might make a difference, something that might uplift this young man. Because he had come up with nothing, he was thankful he still had another hour to think in the car before arriving for the visitation. He prayed he would come up with something.

An hour later, he arrived at the prison and waited until his group was directed to the visitation room. While waiting, he once again ran into Billy.

"Hey, Coach," Billy extended his hand. "Good to see you again."

Eric noticed Billy seemed to be a little more like himself than he was last week. "Hey, Billy."

The two men shook hands.

"Would you like to go first again? That seemed to work pretty well," Billy shook his head.

"Oh, I don't have to go first," Eric said. "I mean, you're his brother."

Billy shifted his weight. "Can I be honest with you? It was easier last week when you went first. He was sorta warmed up by the time I saw him. I never know what to say to him."

Eric nodded. "That makes two of us. There's not much anyone can say."

"Hey, Coach?" Billy looked at his brother's coach in the eye. "I really appreciate you drivin' all the way out here to see Tim. It says a lot."

Eric didn't know how to respond. He just clenched his jaw, looked Billy in the eye, and shook his hand.

A few minutes later, Eric and the others were led into the visitation room.

A short time after that, Tim entered the room and walked over to where Eric was sitting. He took the seat across the table.

"You came back," Tim nodded.

"I did," Eric returned the nod. "How was your week?"

Tim looked away. "It was crap: the food, the people, the boredom. All pretty much crap."

"I can't do anything about the food or the people," Eric said. "I could bring you some books. Somethin' that might stimulate your mind, pass the time."

Tim almost smiled. "I never thought I'd ever crack open a book again. That's pretty sad to think it could be the highlight of my day."

"Books can teach, inspire, entertain," Eric returned the half smile. "Just let me know if you want somethin', and I'll do my best to find it."

"Alright," Tim nodded. "Last week, you told me you'd tell me where you screwed up so bad in your life, remember? I find it hard to believe that you, Mr. Solid Respectable, would ever make a huge mistake."

Eric sighed. "What I said was that someone gave me a second chance when no one else would. Remember?"

"Yeah," Tim nodded.

"I don't think anyone, includin' my wife, knew what it felt like to lose my job as Head Coach of the Panthers," Eric began, "not really. To make matters worse, the Principal at East Dillon later let me know that I was never supposed to take the job as the Lion's Coach."

Tim raised his eyebrows.

Eric continued. "That's right. Levy Burnwell told me that I was the only one who wasn't in on the big joke. As far as football was concerned, I was out ... a loser ... not wanted. Tim, you live in Dillon, and you know how they treat losers in that town. I found myself alone and isolated over there at that dilapidated school no one in Dillon gave a damn about. East Dillon had no football program. There was no money, no equipment, no field, no staff, no talent ... no interest. There was no hope. There was nothin'."

Tim continued to listen.

Eric continued. "You know what the worst part was? I was totally on my own. I took a cut in pay to go over to East. The team didn't know this, but when I left TMU, I signed a contract that did not allow me to work for another college football program for two years. It's called a _non-compete clause_. Tim, what I'm tryin' to tell you is that I was screwed. I was alone ... and no one, no one could or would help me."

Tim was hanging on Eric's every word. "But you didn't give up," Tim shook his head. "How did you do it?"

"First, I had to give up my pride," he answered, counting with his fingers. "My pride has been known to get me into trouble. It's a big part of what got me fired. Second, I had to admit I needed some help. I turned it all over to the man upstairs. I prayed for strength and help and direction. Not long after that, I was tested one more time that I'll _never_ forget. That's when the Lions had their asses handed to them in the first game of the season. I had to make the unpopular decision to forfeit that game at half time. Hell, half my players were injured. It would have been irresponsible of me to not call that game." Then, he looked Tim square in the eye. "You know better than anyone about what happened to Jason Street. After livin' through that, I wasn't about to allow injured players back out on that field for more punishment."

As Eric told his story, it became apparent that he was reliving the experience. Tim took a hard swallow. Tim had never gotten over what happened to his best friend, but it had never occurred to him that his coach hadn't gotten over it, either. Not until now.

"Dillon doesn't tolerate losers, but it tolerates quitters even less. And now ... I was a quitter," Eric's drawn face showed the pain of the experience. "After the forfeit, what little team I had left boycotted me. They were ashamed of the forfeit. They each had to pay a price for that. That was it. I was done ... again."

By now, Tim was spell bound. "Then, what happened?" he wanted to know.

"You wanna know what happened?" Eric voice became shaky and perspiration began to bead up on his forehead, as he clenched his jaw in an attempt to hang onto his composure. "I was lookin' at havin' to start my whole life all over again, at my age with a family ... in this economy. There was nowhere to go, nowhere to turn. I was trapped. I got scared. I couldn't think, couldn't sleep or even breathe. No matter how hard I tried, I couldn't escape my life. I was a failure as a coach, as a provider, as a man." He took in a deep breath before he could go on. "I ran out onto the Lion's field ... and had just given up. I surrendered." Eric's voice became even shakier_. _"_I wanted to die, Tim. That's __never__ happened to me before._"

Tim hung onto every word.

"When you walked out on the Lion's field and found me out there alone that day," Eric looked at the young man with utter pain in his eyes, "that's where my head was at. _I was seriously contemplatin' endin' my life._"

Tim winced. He had, indeed, been there that day, and he _knew_ Eric was telling him the truth. His coach always told him the truth. But what he could not believe was that his coach somehow knew to tell him this story at this time, as Tim had been having private, tortured thoughts of giving up his own useless, miserable life.

"Yeah," Tim clenched his jaw and finally spoke. "You didn't look so good." He shook his head, finally understanding why his coach looked so strange that day.

"Hrrrmmmmph," Eric scoffed. "Well, now, you are the _only_ person in the world who knows _why_ I didn't look so good. You didn't know it then, but your offer to help me, any way you could, was a life line to me. And I grabbed hold of it. Do you remember?"

"Yeah," Tim stoically nodded. "I do."

"And I know I should have thanked you before, but I'm thankin' you now," Eric was earnest, sincere. "It's that stupid pride thing I struggle with. I'll always be grateful and in debt to you for what you did for me, and I want you to know that I'm here for you, Tim."

God-smacked, all Tim could say was, "Thank you ... for tellin' me, Coach." His coach had just returned the favor by throwing him a lifeline. It felt good.

The eyes of both men were moistened, and they fought back letting tears go any further. Eric quickly glanced up at the clock on the wall. "Listen, uh, I need to let Billy have a few minutes with you. I'll see you next week?"

"Yeah," Tim nodded. A slow, little smile came over his face as Eric turned to leave, Tim said, "Cars."

Eric turned around with a puzzled look on his face.

"I'd like some books or magazines about fast cars," Tim nodded.

Eric returned the nod with a tight smile and said, "Alright."

The long drive back home was cathartic for Eric. It felt good to be free of the confession he had been carrying inside for all that time. It felt good to know that he was consciously committed to helping this kid for all the right reasons, whether anyone else wanted to or not. He felt right with God. He had obtained clarity in his place with Tim. Eric just felt good.


	6. Chapter 6

Title: Forward Progress (6/18)

Author: Romantique

Email:

Classification: Eric/Tami Drama/Angst

Rating: T for some language.

Summary: MAJOR SPOILERS from Season 4. Tami and Eric have been put through the ringer this season. Wouldn't you love to see them smile? At least for awhile? This fic takes place at the end of Season 4 before Season 4 airs on NBC.

Disclaimer: MAJOR SPOILERS from Season 4.

Legal: These characters do not belong to me. I'm just a fan and have not made a dime. Please email me to obtain permission to post.

_At the Taylor Home ..._

For the past week, packing continued, as did regular hauls to the dump and to several charitable donation sites. It was amazing how much 'stuff' the Taylor family had accumulated since their move to Dillon. Tami was adamant she did not want any junk finding its way to the new home. There was suddenly furniture that wouldn't work in the new place ... as a heads up to Eric that a new living room and dining room set would soon be in their future.

Because Tami was so systematic in the planning of the move, they had first cleared out their garage and used the empty space as a 'staging area' for the first truck hauls on moving day. Before they moved anything into the house, she and Eric planned to go over and set up the kitchen and bathrooms ... so they would at least be able to function their first few days in their new place.

Eric recruited Tinker, Vince, Coach Traub, and a few other Lions players to help him on moving day. In exchange for helping him during their Winter Break, he planned to cook out at the new place ... weather permitting ... to feed the guys. If the weather didn't cooperate, it would be pizzas.

Today had been Eric's last day at school before the Winter Break. With only a week to go before Christmas, and only a few days after that before they took possession of their new home, the Taylors were beginning to feel some time pressure. Soon, they would have another pair of hands to help. Julie would be returning home the day after tomorrow.

Every day, the packing and lifting and moving equated to a lot of hard, physical work for both Tami and Eric. They saw progress and were dog tired at the end of each day. Lately, both had been sleeping like babies.

This night, lying in bed, Eric let out a huge exhalation of exhaustion before closing his eyes. Tami searched for his hand in the dark.

"We got a lot done today, Hon," she said. "Can you believe it? The attic is all cleared out."

"I'm glad tomorrow's Saturday," Eric said. "I need to make as many dump runs as I can this weekend," he yawned after the last word. This was the last weekend before Christmas.

"It's going to feel so good when we can finally sleep in our new home ... when everything is all moved and in its new place" Tami said. "I am still so excited."

"You are?" Eric asked and snuggled close to his wife. "I am, too. The closer the move date comes, the more excited I'll be."

"Hon, are you as sore as I am?" she asked. The muscles in her legs were twitching, as they were overworked from going up and down the attic stairs more times than she cared to remember.

Eric hauled all the boxes downstairs that had been stored in their attic. "Ohhhh," he whispered. "I'm feelin' it in my neck and shoulders. I took some aspirin just a few minutes ago. I tell you what, though ... It's a good sore."

Tami smiled. Then, she kissed him. "I know what would take my mind off my aches and pains," she whispered in his ear.

"Hmmmmmm," Eric said with a smile, pulling her closer to him. "C'mere. Why don't you show me what you know?"

And they proceeded to take their minds off their aches and pains.

_Sunday afternoon ..._

Eric, Tami, and Gracie went to the airport to pick up Julie. Her flight came in a little before schedule, and Julie was waiting right outside the baggage area, looking for her Dad's SUV.

"I see her, Hon," Tami pointed towards the curb.

Eric had to wait until he could maneuver around the airport cops. When he was as close as he could get, Julie started walking towards their rig. Eric put his SUV in "Park" and jumped out to grab his daughter's bags, placing them in the back.

"Hey, Sweetie. Welcome home," he said, giving her a quick peck on the cheek. He had to get the car moving, fast as he was parked in a Loading Zone.

Julie piled into the back seat, next to her baby sister.

"Hey," Tami smiled, turning around and giving her girl a hug. "It's so good to have you home!"

"I can't wait to climb into my own bed," Julie said. "They worked us hard during training. Don't get me wrong," she expounded, "it was great ... but I can't remember being this tired in a long time."

"We're right there with you," Eric chimed in from the driver's seat. "Your momma and I have been busy with non-stop packin' since you left."

"Hi Gracie," Julie leaned over to give her little sister a kiss on the cheek." "Yeah, how's the house coming along?" she asked her parents.

"Just fine," Tami's voice lilted. "Would you believe we got the garage and the attic all cleared out? And your poor father now personally knows the guys down at the dump." Tami smiled, reaching over and taking her husband's hand.

Julie couldn't help but notice her father smiling back at her mother and giving her hand a squeeze. A smile of satisfaction came over Julie's face upon seeing her parents were still very connected to one another.

"It's Sunday night in Dillon, Sweetie," Eric announced. "Is Applebee's okay with you for dinner?"

"Uh, not really," Julie said from the backseat. "I sorta told them I'd be away until Wednesday, because I wanted a few days off after arriving back home," she confessed. "How about breakfast for dinner at home?"

"Waffles with bacon and eggs?" Eric smiled. "You want some waffles, Gracie?" he asked his youngest, looking in the rearview mirror.

"Waffles!" Gracie clearly was on board.

"Alright. Breakfast for dinner it is," Eric nodded and drove his family home.

_Later, After Dinner ..._

Tami took Gracie into the bathroom to give her a bath before bedtime. The toddler managed to get syrup into her hair. Eric and Julie were left to clean up the kitchen and the dishes.

Handing her dad the plates and silverware to wash in the sink over the counter, Julie said, "So, Mom says that you've been visiting Tim Riggins pretty regularly?"

A little surprised, Eric raised his eyebrows. "Yeah."

"I've been in touch with Lyla," Julie said in a tentative tone.

Eric looked up from washing the dishes, "Oh?"

"Yeah," Julie continued. "I emailed her and asked her if she'd heard from Tim. When she said no, I told her what happened. It was hard."

"What was her reaction?" Eric was curious, especially after talking with Jason.

Returning with the dirty juice glasses, Julie said, "It was weird. It was like she's mad at him. I can understand her being upset ... but mad? After all this time?"

Eric began rinsing plates and handing them to his daughter to dry. "Don't say anything, please, but I had the exact same conversation and reaction from Jason Street."

"You talked to Jason?" Julie was curious.

"Jason and Tim were best friends," Eric tried to justify his actions. "I thought ... I thought. I don't know what I thought."

Julie looked up at her Dad. "You thought someone would care?"

With his mouth clenched shut, Eric shook his head. "Exactly. I thought someone in this town would care." Licking his lips, he continued, "And you know what? I was wrong."

"You know what I think?" Julie took another clean plate from her Dad to dry. "I think what Tim did was stupid, absolutely stupid. But when that tornado blew through town, and we were in the grocery store ... he protected me. He gave no thought to his own safety and kept me from getting hurt. That's something I can never forget. And that's something," Julie shook her head.

"That's something I can never forget, either," Eric hugged his daughter. If she only knew what else he could never forget ... but she never would.

"Dad, when are you going to visit Tim again?" she asked, still hugging her Dad.

"Tuesday at 11:00 a.m. is the only time he's allowed visitors," Eric explained.

Julie pulled away from her Dad and looked him dead in the eye. "I want to go."

Surprised, Eric said, "I don't think you can see him, Sweetie. You have to go through an approval process to be placed on the list."

"It's Christmas. Why don't I ride up with you ... and at least get that approval process started to get on the list," she asked. "Besides, you can't tell me you couldn't use an ally in this."

"Well ... I don't know how your Mom would feel about that," Eric hesitated.

"How would I feel about what?" Tami said, returning to the kitchen after putting Gracie down. Tired from the long day, the youngest Taylor went down easily without a fuss.

Julie spoke to get her Dad off the hook. "I asked Dad if I could go with him the next time he visits Tim Riggins."

"I didn't realize you and Tim were that close," Tami remarked to her oldest daughter.

"Lyla and Tim were friends with Matt and Me," Julie said. "You know that."

"Hon, Julie's not on the Visitor's List," Eric decided to interrupt this futile discussion. "She can't see Tim."

"Yeah," Julie said. "Dad was explaining that, and I asked to ride up with him, anyway. You know, spend some father/daughter time together ... at the holidays?"

"Well, that's entirely up to your Dad," Tami acquiesced. "But if you are both going to take Tuesday off from packing, you'll both put in a good effort tomorrow?"

Eric didn't say a word. He had been working his ass off all weekend.

Julie, who had not been home to help, said, "If you'll let me sleep in, I promise I will put forth a huge effort tomorrow."

"Packin' aside ... Let me sleep on it," Eric asked his daughter, "okay?"

"Sure," she said, returning to drying the dishes.

And Eric gave his daughter a wink.

Later that night, after Tami and Eric went to bed, Eric pulled up the covers to his chin and rolled over onto his side facing away from Tami. It would have been impossible for her not to notice.

"Hon, what's wrong?" she asked.

Eric's eyes were already closed. "Nothin'," he mumbled. "I'm tired."

Tami was sitting up on her side of the bed, propped up against the headboard. "Are you sure this doesn't have anything to do with Tim? You are getting to where you become so sullen every time the subject of Tim Riggins comes up." There. She finally said what she had only been able to think for weeks.

Eric let out a huge sigh. "Can we talk about this in the mornin'?" he pleaded, hugging himself under the covers.

Tami's arms were crossed in front of her. "On one condition," she began, her voice softening. She slid down under the covers next to her husband. "That you don't sleep with your back to me, okay?"

Eric opened his eyes and thought for a moment. Then, he rolled over to face his wife. Her eyes glistened in the dark.

"I love you, Babe," she said.

"I love you, too, he replied. Then, he extended his arm out to her, and she immediately placed her head on his shoulder and wrapped her long arms around his middle.

Tami looked up and gave Eric a kiss which, after a beat, he returned. He wasn't kidding ... he was tired. The two drifted off to sleep in one another's arms.

The next morning, the sun shone through their bedroom window waking Tami. She looked over at the clock and saw it was just shy of 8:00 a.m. Reaching over, she pushed the button on the alarm clock so that it would not go off. Reaching over Eric caused him to stir. He opened eyes to find his wife already awake, and she began their day the way any man loves to have the day begin.

Afterwards, as they lay in one another's arm, Eric whispered, "You wanted to talk about Tim last night?"

"Yeah, Tami whispered back, stroking his back.

"Babe, Christmas will be here in a few days. Tomorrow is the last time I'll see him until after the first of the year," he said. "We're movin' next week. I'm not goin' to visit him next week."

She was surprised to hear him say that.

"Julie asked me if she could go because she told me she'd be forever beholdin' to Tim for keepin' her safe during the tornado," Eric was now running his fingers through Tami's long, blonde hair. "I have to tell you that I'm beholdin' to him, too." He wished he could share more with her about why he felt so indebted to Tim Riggins, but he could never bring himself to do it.

Tami nodded. "I'm also beholding to him for protecting our girl," Tami agreed. "Is Tim allowed anything for Christmas?"

"Cards," Eric whispered. "They'll get some kind of a special meal, some extra TV time ... but that's it."

"You're right, Hon," Tami said. "It is Christmas. You should go out there tomorrow and see him."

"Yeah," he said, giving her a squeeze.

"Is that why you've been so sullen?" Tami wanted to know. "Because it's Christmas ... and Tim is going to have a bleak one?"

"Partly," he answered. 'I'll just be glad when everyone is not so angry with him. "He's payin' a hell of a price for what he did."

"You think I'm angry with Tim, Hon?" Tami asked, making a conscious effort to keep her voice very even.

Eric sniffed. "You, Buddy ... Jason and Lyla. Yeah. I think people are angry with Tim for screwin' up his life so bad. I'll be glad when everyone's moved passed that part. You know, in that _'dealin' with loss'_ diagram you gave me."

"Aren't you the least upset with Tim for what he did?" Tami asked, still rubbing his back.

"I'm disappointed that Tim made a bad decision and got himself into a terrible mess," Eric whispered. "But I'm not angry with him. He, alone, is payin' the price for the bad decision he made."

"Good answer, Coach," she said and then gave him a light peck on the lips. "I think you're right. You are further along on that diagram than I am ... and probably the others, too."

Eric gave his wife a tight squeeze. The tough veneer protecting Tami Taylor was beginning to soften a little. A little smile came over him, as he softly kissed the top of her head.


	7. Chapter 7

Title: Forward Progress (7/18)

Author: Romantique

Email:

Classification: Eric/Tami Drama/Angst

Rating: T for some language.

Summary: MAJOR SPOILERS from Season 4. Tami and Eric have been put through the ringer this season. Wouldn't you love to see them smile? At least for awhile? This fic takes place at the end of Season 4 before Season 4 airs on NBC.

Disclaimer: MAJOR SPOILERS from Season 4.

Legal: These characters do not belong to me. I'm just a fan and have not made a dime. Please email me to obtain permission to post.

_Enroute to Texas Department of Corrections, Midland County …_

Once again, Eric drove out to the prison to visit Tim, but this time, he had company.

"When you see Tim, tell him that I want to get on the Visitor's list, if that's okay with him," Julie said, looking out the window at the flat brush scenery. "If he says anything about being embarrassed ... tell him I said to get over it."

Eric nodded. "Alright."

"And you can tell him that I'm in touch with Lyla," Julie said, still looking out the window. "And yeah, she was mad at first ... but she's slowly coming around. She even said she'd like to write to him if we send her the address."

"Really?" Eric was surprised to hear this news. "You know what? You're somethin' else," he smiled.

"Why thank you, Daddy," she smiled back at him.

"I think your Momma's startin' to budge a little, too," his eyes went back to the road. "It must be the Christmas spirit."

Eric enjoyed the remainder of the ride with his daughter. She was like a ray of sunshine.

After they arrived, Billy Riggins was thrilled to see Julie with her Dad. Tim had been down, and Billy thought that maybe hearing from his old friends might do him some good. Billy volunteered to take Julie to the Administrator's office to start the paperwork to get her on the Visitor's List, allowing Eric some time to visit with Tim. Eric handed a Christmas card and a few books he brought to the guard as he went through Security. In a few minutes, the card and books were returned to him. As was usual procedure, the group of people he was with was led to the Visiting Room.

Eric tried not to react when he saw Tim. Tim had a gash along the side of his face that was stitched, certain to leave scar.

"What happened to you?" Eric tried to keep his voice down.

Tim gave his former coach a stern look. "Nothing happened."

"Nothin'?" Eric raised his eyebrows.

"Nothing," Tim reiterated, indicating the subject was closed.

"Well, can you at least tell me you didn't start it?" Eric whispered.

"No, I can't," Tim's eyes darted around the room.

Eric caught Tim's drift. "Alright," he said, nodding his head to indicate that he understood. "Hey, I brought you what I was allowed to bring you," he handed Tim the books and an envelope.

Tim gave a tight smile. "Thank you," he said.

"You're welcome," Eric said.

Tim opened the card. "That's nice," Tim said. "You tell Julie and Mrs. Coach thank you for me, would you?"

"Julie's here," Coach said. "She can't see you today because she needs to get approved to be on the Visitin' List, but your brother took her down to get that goin'. Julie told me to tell you that if you're embarrassed about seein' her ... you need to get over it."

Tim let out a little chuckle. "Tell her I will."

After an awkward silence, Eric said, "I need to let you know that I won't be here next week. Tami and I found another house near the lake, and unless somethin' unforeseen happens with the escrow, next Tuesday is our movin' date."

"You bought a house on the lake?" Tim smiled, understanding how important it was to have a home. "That's incredible!" After a beat he said, "I don't expect you to come see me every week, Coach."

"I know that," Eric said. "I'll be back in two weeks, okay? Hopefully, I'll have Julie with me."

Tim smiled. "That would be fine."

The two men shook hands. "You take care of yourself," Eric said, then turning and walking away.

On the ride back home, Eric was noticeably deep in thought.

"Dad, I overheard you talking to Billy about something happening to Tim's face," Julie said, letting her father know that she knew something had happened.

"Honey, Tim's in there with some bad characters," Eric said, concentrating on the road ahead. "There is no way I'm lettin' you go in that Visitation Room with those other inmates in there by yourself," he said, protectively.

Looking at her father, she shook her head, "Understood." Shifting in her seat, she continued. "You're worried about him in there, aren't you?"

"Yeah, I am," Eric's jaw tightened.

"We need another pair of eyes," Julie said, very matter-of-factly. "You know, to keep an eye on him."

Eric was often amazed at the way his daughter's mind worked. "What?"

"Remember when you told Mom and me about that Cops 'n Jocks program?" she asked.

"Yeah, I remember," he said.

"You know some people in law enforcement," she said. "Maybe someone knows something or someone who could help."

"Well, that program is for kids. Tim's an adult now," Eric explained. "That's why his situation is so bad."

"I was just thinking that maybe someone would know something ... I don't know," Julie was only trying to help.

"No," Eric shook his head. "You're right. It wouldn't hurt anything to ask around. Because you never know," Eric smiled and placed a loving hand on top of his daughter's head. "Hey, I didn't say anything to Tim about Lyla writin' to him. You have the address to give her. I figure either she does or she doesn't. I just didn't feel like layin' anything more on him durin' this visit."

"I think that's wise, Dad," Julie said. "Do you think Mom will let me take off from school to go and visit him? I did just take three weeks off to go to Florida."

"You're Momma is gonna be Head of the Counseling Staff. You can't be missin' more school this next semester if you want to graduate on time," he shared her concern. "But maybe you could call in sick or somethin' ... just this once."

Eric gave his daughter a wink, and she smiled.

_Christmas Day, Buddy Garrity's Home ..._

The Taylors received an invitation from Buddy to have Christmas dinner at his house this year, as a thank you for their hosting Thanksgiving. Eric convinced Tami that there was no point in messing up the kitchen she had worked so hard to clean. She was too tired to argue with him on this one, so they arrived at noon with store bought pies and a few bottles of wine. Besides, Tami thought that next Christmas in their new home would more than make up for this one.

"Merry Christmas! Come on in," Buddy gregariously bellowed, grinning from ear to ear as he opened his front door to the Taylor family. "Dinner is just about ready," he announced, asking if he could take some coats.

"Merry Christmas, Buddy," Eric said, holding Gracie. He shook his friend's hand and gave him a man hug.

As the Taylors streamed into the house and exchanged pleasantries, they were met in the living room by Angela Collette and Mindy and baby Stephen Riggins.

"Oh, my gosh," Tami exclaimed. "He's getting to be so big!" she said, referring to Stephen. "Where's Billy?" she asked.

Subdued, Mindy said, "He's visiting Tim today. They let immediate family visit with the inmates on Christmas Day."

Taking a seat beside her, Tami put her hand on Mindy's knee. "I'm glad you're here," she smiled. "Hey, Angela," she turned to Mindy's mother.

"Hi Tami, Angela smiled. "I heard you all are moving out to the lake."

"Yes, we get the keys on Tuesday morning," she smiled. "I'm grateful to Buddy for holding Christmas Dinner. Our house is pretty much all boxed up."

A few minutes later, both Lyla Garrity and Tyra Collette entered the living room from one of the bedrooms.

There were shrieks of surprise and recognition from both Tami and Julie, and a big smile from Eric.

"Did you see what I got for Christmas?" Buddy asked Eric, pointing over at his daughter.

"That is fantastic," Eric continued to smile. "Christmas is all about family."

The two college girls made their way around to give hugs to both Tami and Julie, and eventually to Eric and Gracie. Buddy offered wine and other refreshments to the gathering in the living room.

"Buddy is serving duck for dinner, but we made sure you were covered with some vegan options," Tyra reassured her friend, Julie. "We took care of you, girlfriend."

"Thanks!" Julie was sincere.

"So, tell me about your classes, Tyra," Tami wanted to know.

"Honestly, my favorite class is Poli Sci," Tyra smiled.

"I always knew you'd be a _'mover and a shaker,'_" Angela laughed.

Normally, Tyra would have made a remark about her sister _'moving and shakin'_ at the Landing Strip, but she knew her sister was in no mood and thought better of it.

After a time, Lyla went to check with her Dad to find out how much longer dinner would be. She returned to Tyra and Julie and said, "We have at least 30 minutes before dinner. Would you all like to come to the back of the house where we can talk?"

"Sure," Julie shrugged, and she followed Tyra and Lyla to one of the back bedrooms.

As soon as the door was closed, Tyra began. "Okay, what's the latest on Tim."

"Well, uh, I rode up to the prison with my Dad on Tuesday," Julie reported. "I was put on the Visitor's List, but we're not going back until the first Tuesday in January. I won't see him until then," Julies said. "We're moving next Tuesday."

"I heard," Lyla smiled. "Congratulations!"

"Thanks," Julie answered.

"Billy says Tim is pretty down," Tyra reported. "Pretty depressed."

"I wish I could see him, but I'm going back on Friday," Lyla said. "But I do have a letter ready to mail to him. Thanks for getting the address for me," she said to Julie.

"No problem," Julie nodded.

"Yeah, I don't have time to see him either before I leave," Tyra said. "Tim won't even let Mindy come up to see him. He doesn't want the baby out there. So far, Billy and your Dad are the only ones who have visited him," she said to Julie.

"I'll see him soon," Julie said, "but yeah ... I think anyone who can write to him regularly right now would be good." After a time, Julie asked Lyla, "Is your Dad still upset with him?"

Lyla almost laughed. "Dad and Tim have _never_ liked one another, not really. But to answer your question, Dad has not moved an inch on Tim getting himself into this mess."

Tyra interrupted. "I still can't believe that Tim did this by himself. You want to know what I think? I think Billy was in on this, too."

"That would not surprise me, at all," Lyla nodded. "Billy is always the one coming up with _'get_ _rich_ _quick schemes.'_ If this isn't one of those, I don't know what is." 

"Would Tim take the blame for his brother?" Tyra asked.

"Yes," Lyla and Julie said at the same time, and then, looked at one another ... each one thinking the other must know about that aspect of Tim, firsthand.

"Please don't say anything to anyone. I won't be able to tell you stuff if anyone finds out it came from me, but my Dad said that Tim got into some kind of a scrape this past week," Julie told the two girls. "Dad's worried about him in there."

"Yeah, I am too," Tyra said. "Tim's not one to keep his feelings in check."

"Lyla," Buddy tapped on the door. "Would you lovely ladies please come out here and help me get the food to the table? We're ready to roll."

"Sure, Dad," Lyla said. "We'll be out in a minute."

"Hey, Julie, are you around next week at all?" Tyra asked. "Because if you are, I'd love to hang out."

"I'm working and we're moving, but we get the keys to the new house on Tuesday," she said. "Maybe you'd like to come out to the lake? Stay for a few days?"

"Oh, that would be awesome," Tyra smiled. She got along really well with Julie's mom.

"I wish I could stay longer," Lyla said. "I have to get back for a conference this weekend."

"Well, there's always Easter and summer break at the lake," Julie raised her eyebrows. "So, both of you keep that in mind." Suddenly, she was seeing the benefits to her parents' upcoming move.

"Hey, that's true!" Lyla smiled. Suddenly their vacation options had just expanded. "Now, what I really want to know next is ... have you called Landry since you've been in town?"

"Oh, didn't you know?" Tyra baited. "Landry is in Chicago with Saracen."

Surprised, Lyla looked at Julie, whose nodding head confirmed the information.

"That's right," Tyra said. "They're having a Chi-town Bromance."

And the three girls erupted in laughter.

"Lyla, Honey," Buddy yelled from down the hall.

"Okay, coming," Lyla yelled back. "Guess we'll have to pick this up again after dinner," she whispered to the girls.

_After Christmas dinner ..._

All of the adults drank way too much wine over dinner. Mindy went to lie down for awhile with Stephen, as Eric, Tami, Buddy, and Angela talked and laughed about everything under the sun. Gracie was content to sit in her Daddy's lap.

The girls retreated back to the bedroom ... and Tyra managed to pilfer a bottle of white wine while no one was looking and a corkscrew.

"Pop," went the cork, as Tyra poured a little wine in Christmas paper cups. After she poured wine into three cups, she said, "Here's to the beautiful single young ladies of Dillon."

"Cheers!" smiled Lyla.

Julie also clinked her cup to the other two.

"So, are you dating anyone at East Dillon?" Lyla asked Julie.

"No," she smiled. "But I've been flirting around with a guy I met through _Habitat for Humanity_. His name is Ryan, he's older than me ... and he's cute."

"So _that's _why you became so interested in building houses, Taylor," Tyra teased.

"Nooooo," Julie protested. "That's not _entirely_ true." She smiled. "You know I've always had this social conscience."

"Does this social conscience look nice in his jeans?" Lyla giggled.

Julie smiled, taking another sip of her wine. "Well ... actually ... yes! Ryan looks great in his jeans."

The three girls laughed some more. It felt good.

"What about you, two," Julie pushed back. "How's dating in college?"

"Ohhhh, I'm too busy to date," Tyra said. "I have too much going on with trying to keep up with my grades."

"Yeah, same here," Tyra chimed in. "Not as much _'fun'_ as I thought it would be. There's too much at stake."

"I don't know about you two, but Matt, Landry, and Tim seem like such a long time ago," Julie lamented. "I mean a lot has happened this year ... and it's only Christmas."

"That's for sure," Tyra agreed. "I mean, we've all taken on such different directions. Especially Tim. Sorry, Lyla."

Taking another sip, Lyla said, "It's okay. Who here can honestly say they didn't see jail in Tim's future?" She raised her glass at the irony of what she said.

"I was hoping it wouldn't happen," Julie said.

"Yeah, me, too," Lyla looked sad. "Me, too."


	8. Chapter 8

Title: Forward Progress (8/18)

Author: Romantique

Email:

Classification: Eric/Tami Drama/Angst

Rating: This chapter is rated M for some language and some suggestive yet non-graphic sexual content between two, married adults.

Summary: MAJOR SPOILERS from Season 4. Tami and Eric have been put through the ringer this season. Wouldn't you love to see them smile? At least for awhile? This fic takes place at the end of Season 4 before Season 4 airs on NBC.

Disclaimer: MAJOR SPOILERS from Season 4.

Legal: These characters do not belong to me. I'm just a fan and have not made a dime. Please email me to obtain permission to post.

_December 29__th__, Tuesday After Christmas ..._

Missy Aubrey phoned Eric around 10:00 a.m. to let him know the escrow was all closed out, and she had the key to the house, ready for him to pick up. She asked if he could come over before noon, as she was working holiday hours so that she could be with her family over the Winter Break. He told her he would be right over.

After picking up the key from the realtor, Eric drove straight to the lake house to drop off the first load of boxes. He couldn't help but smile, as he opened the front door to the spacious, empty house. Missy had a large _'Welcome Home'_ basket of wine, stemware, and assorted delicacies beautifully wrapped and placed on the hearth of the fireplace, along with a large, red Poinsettia for the holidays. The house was immaculately clean and smelled wonderful. He knew Tami was going to be so happy to see it. It was turn-key ready for her to decorate and make it their home.

Eric went back to his rig and began to retrieve boxes. He carried them into the room designated on the side of each box and neatly stacked them where they would be out of the way for tomorrow's moving effort. The boxes in this first load were for the kitchen and the bathrooms. Eric took care of a few more things, such as setting the thermostat, as it was a bit chilly inside. Ready to head back for another load, he turned on some inside lights and walked outside the front door. Perusing the front garden and their gorgeous view of the lake, it was utterly picturesque, even on a cloudy day. After drinking in his new view for a few moments of quiet solitude, he locked the door and began the drive back to their _'old'_ house.

About an hour later, Eric arrived at the 'old' house to find Tami finishing up some packing in their bedroom. Earlier that morning, Tami had dropped off Gracie at daycare so that she would not be underfoot. Julie had returned back to the grind at Applebees. For tomorrow, Eric rented a U-Haul, and the guys would be over to help Eric move their bedroom furniture into the new house. Tami decided to donate most of their living and dining room furniture, as she wanted new furniture in their new home.

"Hey, Babe," Eric said, bounding through the front door. "Are you ready to go?"

"Yes," Tami said with a smile. "The next load of boxes is stacked in the garage nearest to the garage door."

"Alright," he said. "I'll load 'em in, now." Slightly winded, he returned a few minutes later.

The two, dressed in jeans and black, Panther sweatshirts, climbed into Eric's rig and headed for their new home. The weather was cool and overcast which suited Eric just fine. He only hoped it would not rain tomorrow. He hated moving in the rain.

Once they arrived, Eric drove the up onto the driveway. He exited the car and circled around to the passenger side. He took his smiling wife by the hand and said, "C'mere." He led her to the front door. Then, he opened the door with their new key, and turned to scoop her up in his arms and carry her over the threshold. Tami giggled with delight. Once inside, as he slowly lowered her tall, thin frame down to the floor, she placed her arms around Eric's neck. Her smiling eyes met his. She leaned in to kiss him as he enveloped her with his strong, muscular arms. He reached over and pushed the door shut.

"Welcome home, Babe," he whispered near her ear and proceeded to nuzzle down her neck.

Tami closed her eyes. Succumbing to his touch, she let out a sigh from deep in her throat. Once again, Eric reached down, picked her up, and carried her into their new bedroom. She smiled when she saw what her husband had been up to that morning. In the middle of the room was an inflated air mattress made with sheets, pillows, and quilts. Next to the bed were a bottle of wine and two wine glasses.

Eric lowered his beautiful wife onto the mattress and stretched himself out over her. He then steadied himself on his knees while pulling off his sweatshirt and t-shirt in one motion, over his head. Tami followed suit and kicked off her shoes. In another minute, jeans and shoes came off and both of the Taylors were underneath the warm, soft quilts. Eric leaned over and fell into a kiss that slowly built into passionate touching and in turn, ignited into explosions of pent up desire.

"Oh, my God," Eric gasped. Spent, he collapsed next to his wife.

Tami tightly held onto him until their shaking bodies stilled. She kissed his shoulder. "This is the best 'welcome home' ever."

Eric gently kissed the top of her head. "You know, it's strange," Eric whispered, winded and lost in thought. "This place feels like home. It did the first time I came here."

He extended his arm out, as Tami snuggled against his chest with the timing of a couple who had been together for a long, long time.

"I think this is the last threshold I'll be carryin' you over," he said, closing his eyes and nuzzling into her fragrant hair. It smelled of lavender. "We're home ... feels good."

"It does feel good," Tami answered. "I love it here ... can't believe it's ours."

After a few moments of silence, Tami broke it. "Hon, is that wine I see over there?"

Eric finally stirred. "Yeah. Would you like some?" he offered.

"I think I would," she smiled.

"It's from the realtor. I figured we'd open it up and toast our good fortune." He sat up and reached over for the bottle and the corkscrew. Methodically, he removed the packaging around the cork and turned and turned the corkscrew, finally releasing the cork. "Hmmmm," he said smelling the cork. "I think this is a good wine," he said, surprised and impressed.

Then, he handed one glass to Tami, then the other. He carefully filled the glasses.

Putting the bottle down, Tami handed him one of the glasses. Carefully raising the fill glass in the air, Eric said, "To many, many happy years in our new home."

"Here, here," Tami smiled and clinked her glass to his. "Hmmmmm. This _is_ good," Tami remarked upon tasting the first sip of the Chardonnay. "Did I ever thank you for finding this house? It never occurred to me to look over in this area. I just wrote the lake off as something we could never afford."

Taking a swallow of the wine, Eric smiled at his wife. "If you hadn't taken me to the lake that day, that memorable day, I wouldn't have thought to look here, either. I think the timin' was just right." He then topped off their glasses.

"It was meant to be, Hon," Tami looked at her husband, propped up on her elbow, taking another sip. "Are you really going to grill for the guys tomorrow?" There was so much to do the next day. She always thought her husband bit off a little more than he could chew when it came to gauging large projects.

Eric gave a little laugh. "Naw. I'm thinkin' it's gonna be pizzas ... with a rain check for a cookout in the Spring," he nodded. "That back yard is gonna be like cookin' out in the middle of nature. I can't wait for Spring." He looked over at his wife with a boyish grin on his face. "You wanna know why I can't wait for Spring?"

Tami smiled, as she already knew the answer to the question. "Because Spring is _that_ much closer to football season?" she playfully responded. As a coach's wife, she had better know the answer to his question.

Carefully placing her now empty glass of the floor, she turned to her husband and gave him a slow, soulful kiss. As her tongue touched his, the taste of the wine swirled in their mouths. She drew herself closer to him, as he took her into his arms.

"Go for two?" Eric whispered lustfully between kisses. "Before we have to pick up Gracie?"

"Yes," Tami answered, as Eric's mouth kissed her sensuously down her neck and into her cleavage, "let's." Closing her eyes, her body instantly responded to her husband's passionate proposition.

_Early the next morning ..._

The weather cooperated on moving day. Although overcast, it was dry and cool. Returning with a U-Haul moving truck, Eric skillfully backed it into his driveway. He was met by Vince Howard, Dallas Tinker, and Coach Traub who were waiting in the front yard.

"Hey, guys," Eric acknowledged them as he stepped out of the truck. "Is this it? Anyone else comin'?"

"Luke said he'd try and be here this afternoon," Tinker said.

"With any luck, we'll be done by noon," Eric said, walking towards them. "Thanks for bein' here on time. He extended his hand to each.

"Coach, your wife told me to tell you that she's taking your baby to daycare," Vince offered.

"Yeah, thanks," Eric nodded. It was best that Gracie not be in the middle of this move. "Alright," he shifted gears. "My wife has everything all organized and labeled, but I just want to make sure we've got beds to sleep in tonight," he explained. "So, let's start in Gracie's room, and we'll take it from there."

Eric led the guys into Gracie's room and handed them his tool box. "Don't scratch this stuff, okay?" Eric raised his eyebrows, referring to the furniture. "Tami's already got us buyin' some furniture, and I don't want to add this stuff to her ever growin' list," he explained.

Tinker decided he would be most useful staying on the truck and steEricg each item up the ramp and then, placing it in the order it needed to be unloaded. He quickly loaded Gracie's small grouping of furniture near the front of the front of the truck and off to the side, so that it would be part the first load off the truck.

Next, Eric directed Vince and Coach Traub to Julie's bedroom.

"Where is your daughter?" Coach Traub asked.

"Well, she worked late last night at Applebee's. So, she decided to spend the night at her friend, Devon's. She'd better be over at the new house by noon," he explained.

The guys then started by taking the mirror off Julie's dresser and then loading it into the truck, followed by her bed and headboard. Next, it was time to load up Eric and Tami's room. Eric's cell phone rang. "Hey," Eric answered, seeing that it was Tami.

"Where are you?" she asked. "I don't have a key."

"Are you at the lake?" he asked.

"Yeah, I'm here waiting for you and the truck," she said. Clearly, there had been a miscommunication.

"Well, Babe, we're about another 30 minutes from leavin' here," he said. "I know I have the only key. Do you want to go and get yourself some coffee or somethin' until we can get there?"

"Yeah," she said. "I can do that. I'll see you in awhile, Honey. Bye," she said with a lilt in her voice.

Disconnecting the call, Eric turned to Vince and good the other end of their dresser. "We gotta get a move on it," he warned. "My wife is at the other house without a key."

Vince looked down. "Um, yeah. I just remembered I was supposed to tell you she was heading over to the other house."

Eric looked at his QB1. "Don't worry 'bout it. Let's just get this truck loaded," he said. "I appreciate you comin' over here today."

"Well, yeah," Vince answered his coach. "You help me ... I help you."

The two loaded the large dresser up the ramp, and with Dallas' help, it was placed at the rear of truck. As Vince and Eric walked back towards the house to grab the headboard, Eric thoughtfully said, "You know, we're not takin' our livin' room and dinin' room set. There's nothin' wrong with it, but you know women ... it doesn't _fit_ in the new house." he make air quotes for the word "fit." "If you and your mom could use any or all of it, you're welcome to it. Wanna take a look at it?"

Surprised, Vince looked at Eric and said, "Yeah. Let's take a look."

The two walked into the living area. "Yeah, the sofa, tables, entertainment center, recliner ... and then this table and chairs over here ... none of this stuff is allowed in the new place." Eric seemed irritated about his recliner. Tami promised to get him a new one.

"This is good stuff!" Vince was delighted. "So, you're sayin' I can take all this to my house?"

"Well, only if you think your mom would be okay with it," Eric said sheepishly.

Vince smiled. "Uh, yeah. She'd be very happy to have some new stuff. I would have to move some of our ol' mismatched stuff out ... but I'm sure someone in the building would be glad to take on our stuff."

"I tell you what," Eric looked over at Vince. "Before I take the truck back tomorrow mornin', you and I'll load up these two rooms and take 'em over to your place. Alright?"

"Okay," Vince smiled. "Thank you, Coach." Vince still couldn't believe his good fortune.

"You're welcome," Eric said. "Now, let's get this first load movin'."

About an hour later, the moving truck rolled up into the driveway of the new house. It was just shy of 10:00 a.m. Dallas rode in the truck with Eric, while Coach Traub followed in his car with Vince. Eric didn't see Tami's car there. She must have taken his suggestion.

All the guys commented on how nice it was being at the lake. They, too, could just see team parties taking place here and gave their approval.

Eric unlocked the front door and showed the guys whose bedroom was whose. Unloading the truck went a lot faster than loading. Eric and Dallas reassembled the beds ... taking care of Eric's number one priority. The way Eric saw it was simple: If he was going to work himself into being dog tired, he was going to have a bed to sleep in that night.

Just as they unloaded the last item off the truck, Tami arrived. After greeting and thanking the guys for their help, Eric gave her their only key and explained they were going back for the next load of boxes.

"I'll go and have keys made while you're gone, okay?" she asked, seeing that there was no unpacking for her to do.

At about 11:20, the truck arrived with its second load. The four guys unloaded the boxes very quickly using the handcart. They stacked each one in the appropriate room as designated on the box.

After a time, Eric rubbed his fingers through his sweaty hair and announced to Tami, "Well, that's it."

Even with boxes stacked in every room, it was amazing how much more room they had in this house.

"I'm gonna order the pizzas," he said, asking the guys what they liked on their pies.

"Don't forget to order a half vegetarian," Tami reminded her husband for their oldest daughter. "And I went ahead and picked up some cold drinks when I had the keys made. They're in the fridge." She also had some plastic cups and paper plates and napkins sitting out on the counter.

"Where is Julie, anyway?" Eric asked.

"She called a few minutes ago. She's on her way," Tami explained. She could tell Eric was irritated that Julie was arriving after the hardest part of the move was over. "Hon, don't forget that she worked late last night, and she has to work late again tonight. She'll help with the unpacking this afternoon and tomorrow."

"Yeah," Eric shook his head. His wife was right.

The guys asked if they could go out and explore the lake until the pizzas arrived. Eric told Coach Traub he would call him on his cell when they did. The shrieks of joy coming from Vince and Tinker sounded more like they came from little boys than from high school students.

Tami smiled. "Better get used to those shrieks of joy," she said to her husband as she continued unpacking a box in their new kitchen. "That's going to be the sound of Spring and Summer around here."

"I could very easily get used to that sound," Eric said, getting himself a cold drink. "Hey, Babe. I offered our old livin' and dinin' room set to Vince and his mom. I know you wanted to donate it to charity ... but frankly, I don't know anyone who is more in need than Vince and his mom."

"That's a wonderful idea," she said, as she came up behind him and wrapped her long arms around his sweaty torso.

He placed his cola on the counter and took his wife in his arms. "I'll get it over to his house before I take the truck back," he smiled, and then, he leaned down to give his wife a kiss.

About that time, Julie bounded into the house, interrupting her parents.

"Hey, Honey," Tami smiled. "Welcome to your new home!"

"Yeah, welcome home," Eric smiled. "I just ordered pizzas. We got you a Vegetarian Delight."

"Thank you, Daddy," Julie smiled. "So, where do I start?" she asked.

"Would you help me unpack the kitchen, Sweetie?" Tami asked.

"Sure," Julie answered, taking off her coat. She couldn't help but think that while this new house felt like a vacation house ... it certainly did not feel as if it was her home, not anymore. With her plans for leaving to work for _Habitat for Humanity_, the feeling suited her just fine.


	9. Chapter 9

Title: Forward Progress (9/18)

Author: Romantique

Email:

Classification: Eric/Tami Drama/Angst

Rating: T for some language.

Summary: MAJOR SPOILERS from Season 4. Tami and Eric have been put through the ringer this season. Wouldn't you love to see them smile? At least for awhile? This fic takes place at the end of Season 4 before Season 4 airs on NBC.

Disclaimer: MAJOR SPOILERS from Season 4.

Legal: These characters do not belong to me. I'm just a fan and have not made a dime. Please email me to obtain permission to post.

_New Year's Eve, the Taylors new Lake Home ..._

In their empty family room, void of any furniture, Eric and Tami lay on the carpet propped up on throw pillows in front of a lit fireplace after dinner. They had allowed Gracie to stay up after dark, long enough to see her mother light a few sparklers leftover from the Fourth in celebration of New Years Eve. Staying up a little past her bedtime, the toddler easily went down to sleep. Julie volunteered to work at Applebee's on New Year's Eve as the night was known to bring in better than average tips.

Sans Julie for dinner, Tami broiled an oriental flank steak in the oven broiler and served a garden salad with fresh French bread for dinner. Considering all the unpacking they had done over the past 36 hours, the meal was quick to prepare ... and guaranteed to satisfy her meat-loving husband. Along with the meal, they opened a very nice bottle of Cabernet Sauvignon.

After their first cooked meal in their new home, Tami said to her husband, "Are you going to make it until midnight, Hon?" She looked over at him, lying there on the floor with his eyes closed.

Eric took in a deep breath and opened his eyes. "I dunno, Babe. After that wonderful dinner, I'm content to lie right here and not move a muscle."

Physically whipped by this move, it was he who had done most of the heavy lifting, along with the help of some of the Lions. He was very aware that their winter break was quickly coming to an end.

Tami looked into her husband's eyes which reflected the flames from the fireplace. His eyes looked tired. She then glanced at the clock on the wall. It was only a little after ten. "Do you want to go to bed?" she asked, brushing his hair off his forehead with her fingers.

"I'm too tired to move," he answered with low energy. "I know ... I'm a dud this New Year's Eve. I'm sorry."

Tami smiled. "You're not a dud. You worked really hard this week to make this all happen for us. I appreciate it more than you know." She stood up and walked over to the far corner of the room and grabbed a blanket from one of the boxes. Walking back over to him, she covered her husband with the blanket and then, crawled under it and snuggled up next to him. She kissed his forehead and whispered, "Close your eyes for a few minutes."

Eric did what she said and wrapped his arms around her, spooning her from behind. The truth of the matter was: Tami was also tired. The two drifted off to sleep, a far cry from the plans they each imagined for their first holiday in their new home. But somehow, all in all, it turned out perfectly.

Julie arrived to their new home a little after midnight to find her parents fast asleep in front of the fireplace that was just beginning to flicker out. In fact, she could hear her Dad softly snoring. She tried to wake them but got no response from either one. Before turning in herself, she checked the thermostat in the room and went into their bedroom to retrieve another blanket. Very gently, she covered them so they would not get cold and went off to her new bedroom.

The next morning, Eric woke with a painful reminder that he'd fallen asleep on the floor. After sitting up, he became very aware of a new crick he acquired in his neck. He groaned as he tried to rub it out, getting nowhere.

"What's wrong, Eric?" Tami asked, knowing her husband like a book.

"I can't move my neck," he said. "Guess I slept on it wrong or somethin'. I'm gonna go take a hot shower and see if I can't work it out."

"You do that," Tami said, reaching up and placing a reassuring hand on his arm. "I'll put the coffee on and start breakfast."

Slowly, Eric stood and made his way to their bedroom. After folding their blankets and stacking them near the wall, Tami went to the kitchen and quickly put the coffee on. Then, she went to change Gracie and get her up for her breakfast. She placed Gracie in her booster seat at the breakfast bar and handed her a Sippy Cup filled with juice. Soon, the toddler was happily munching on bananas with Cherios, as Tami began making an omelet for her and Eric. Tami quickly sliced up some green onion, mushrooms, and an avocado. Then, she grated some cheese and handed Gracie a small slice.

She placed the omelet pan on the front burner and drizzled in some olive oil to the bottom of the pan. Skillfully, she picked up the pan by the handle and moved the plan until the oil was evenly distributed, and placed it back on the burner. She cracked six eggs and began whisking them in a mixing bowl along with a dollop of cream. While waiting for the oil to heat, she quickly popped a couple of English muffins into the toaster oven and set the timer. Less than a minute later, she poured the eggs into the omelet pan and began layering the mushrooms and green onions.

Shaking the pan, the egg was now cooking nicely. Tami loved her new stove. She then added the cheese. After a few minutes, she flipped the omelet so that if folded onto itself, and she checked the underside with a spatula. _"Just another minute,"_ she said to herself. Then, she went to the cupboard and pulled out two plates. She slid the extra large omelet onto a plate and cut it into two pieces of unequal size. Then, she picked up the larger piece and moved it to the other plate for Eric. She topped the omelet with the avocado slices and put a dollop of sour cream and some salsa on the side. Quickly, she buttered the muffins that were perfectly toasted, placing them on the plates.

At perfect timing, Eric emerged dressed and freshly showered. "Oh, that looks fantastic," he said, taking a seat beside Gracie. "Good mornin' Gracie Bell," he said, carefully leaning over to kiss his baby on the top of her blonde head. He instinctively grabbed his neck.

"Here you go," Tami said, passing him his plate. A moment later, she handed him a mug of coffee. "How's your neck?" she asked with a wince on her face. "Is it any better?" She could tell he was stiff.

"I can't turn my head," he said, "or lower it very well." He carefully brought his fork up to his mouth so as not to have to lower his head.

"How about I give you a neck rub after breakfast?" she asked. "Honey, I noticed your cell has four missed calls," Tami continued. "It's right there on the counter," she said, pointing to it.

Eric took his phone and quickly scrolled through the calls. They were all from Billy Riggins. He hit the call back button.

"Hey, Billy?" Eric spoke into the receiver. "Look, I'm sorry, but I just noticed you called last night. What's up?"

Tami watched her husband with great interest, as she sipped her coffee.

"Uh-huh," he responded, raking his fingers through his hair, they way he did when he had to quickly think. "Okay. I'm leavin' here within the hour."

After disconnecting the call, Tami asked, "What?"

"Tim had the crap beat out of him, yesterday," Eric looked her in the eyes. "He's in the hospital."

Tami immediately said, "Well, wait a minute. I'm going with you. You can't drive with your neck like that. We can drop Gracie off at daycare on the way."

They finished their breakfast and Tami rubbed some of Eric's tried-and-true, smelly athletic balm into her husband's neck and shoulder. Then, she rushed to the bathroom and quickly showered and put herself together. Tami then dressed Gracie and poked her head into Julie's room to tell her sleepy daughter where they were going. Julie was very concerned, but she had to get ready to go back to work in a few hours. Tami promised to call her when they knew more.

As Tami drove them towards the prison, Eric shared with her for the first time the injury he saw on Tim's face the last time he'd visited him.

"Tim doesn't belong in there," he shook his head in frustration, only to be stopped by the pain in his neck. "Not with some of those guys. I know he's done wrong and has a price to pay ... but Tim's not evil. He's in there with some really hardened criminals."

"Could he serve his time somewhere else?" Tami asked.

Eric darted his eyes over at her. "I dunno. How do you make somethin' like that happen? Where would we even start?"

Off the top of her head, Tami spoke in free-formed thoughts. "Well, that sounds like we'd need to speak to someone with some political pull, Sugar."

Eric responded, "You think so? Hell, I'm willin' to try anything."

"Well, let's think about that ... we need to figure out who we can speak to," Tami reached over and grabbed her husband's hand. "Okay?"

He squeezed her hand. "Okay," he said. It felt so good to have her back in his corner again, for Tami Taylor could be one reckoning force.

_Midland Memorial Hospital . . ._

About an hour later, Eric and Tami entered the hospital and were directed to the third floor. After checking at the nurse's station, Billy walked up behind them.

"Coach Taylor? Tami?" Billy tried to catch their attention. He looked horrible. He'd been up all night waiting for information on his brother.

"Hey, Billy," Tami looked very concerned. "How's Tim?"

Billy nervously ran his hand through his hair. "Some son-of-a-bitch split Tim's skull." The man was visibly shaken. "They're doing imaging and waiting for a specialist to come up here and see him. I just don't think he's a top priority here because he's a prisoner."

Overhearing that comment, a nurse interrupted their conversation. "I don't mean to intrude on your conversation," the charge nurse locked eyes with the Taylors, who looked like fine, respectable people, "but we don't withhold medical care to prisoners. The prisoners from Midland County are always brought here. We're contracted to care for them. I understand it's very upsetting to have a loved one in the hospital. I just want to set the record straight."

"We appreciate that, M'am," Eric said to the nurse.

Satisfied that she had been heard, the nurse nodded and left the three to their conversation.

"Have you seen him?" Eric asked Billy.

"No," Billy shook his head. "They won't let me see him. A doctor came out and talked to me right before you called me this morning. There's nothing to do but wait."

"How did this happen?" Tami asked. "I mean, do they know anything?"

Billy shook his head again. "No one is telling me anything," he said, visibly distraught. "All I know is that there are some gang bangers in there with Tim, and they've roughed him up once before." Then, Billy looked over at Eric. "You saw that the last time you were here, right Coach?"

"Yeah," Eric said. "I saw that he'd been in some kind of a physical altercation. Tim wouldn't tell me anything."

Billy looked up at Eric. "Tim was protecting himself and you by not saying anything to you about it."

Tami felt a chill run down her spine. She was beginning to more fully understand why Eric had been so upset after returning home from his visits with Tim.

"Do you know more than I do?" Eric asked Tim's big brother.

Billy clenched his jaw. "Even if I did, I couldn't say anything." There was sheer terror in Billy Riggins eyes.

"Hell, I don't know what to do," Eric said. "I mean, this is bigger than any one of us. But somethin' needs to be done. I mean, clearly, Tim can't stay at that prison."

"Well, I know one thing," Tami said. "I'm going to see what I can find out from the nurse's station."

"Good luck," Billy huffed. "I've gotten nowhere with those uptight bitches." Catching himself, Billy quickly apologized for his loose language.

"You know, a little bit a sugar works a whole lot better than vinegar," Tami suggested to Billy Riggins.

Unfortunately, Billy didn't catch the meaning of the old time saying. While Tami was away, Eric carefully studied the jumpy, nervous Billy Riggins.

"I can't stand to see my little brother in a situation like this," Billy began. "I mean, he's not going to make his sentence in there." The tone of his voice was foreboding.

"I don't want to know any details," Eric said in a hushed tone, flashing an intense stare at Billy, "but it doesn't take a rocket scientist to figure out that Tim didn't get into this mess all by himself."

Billy was instantly shaken to his core. Coach Taylor had figured it out. "Well, I don't know what to tell you," he stammered, "because I know nothing. Absolutely nothing," Billy returned the intense stare.

At about that moment, Tami returned. "Tim has a skull fracture. They did a CT scan on his head about an hour ago," she reported. "They're waiting for a specialist to come in and read the scan. Evidently, Tim's been unconscious since they brought him in, yesterday." She took in a deep breath. "But the good news is that all his vital signs are stable. He's listed in critical but stable condition. Tim's a healthy young man. And that's going to count for a lot."

Billy was utterly amazed at the amount of information Tami was able to obtain, far more than he had been told over the past 12 hours. He sincerely thanked her.

"There's really nothing we can do but wait for the specialist," she said. "I'm going to go downstairs and get a cup of coffee." Looking over at Eric she asked, "Would you like me to bring ya'll one?"

"I'm gonna go with you," Eric said. "Would you like us to bring you back a cup?" he asked Billy.

"Uh, no thanks," Billy smiled. "I've had enough coffee today. You all go ahead. I'll wait here."

"Alright," Eric said, and he and Tami headed down the long hallway to the elevators.

At the hospital coffee shop, Eric and Tami bought a cup of coffee and took a seat at a table. "The only upside to Tim bein' seriously injured is that he probably won't be returned to the prison until he's stable. That gives us a little bit of time to figure out who we need to speak with."

"The only political people we know in Dillon are Mayor Rodell and Paul," Tami commented. "But we ask them if they know anyone connected to prisons in West Texas. We start from there." She shook her head.

Taking another sip of his coffee, Eric added, "We're not gonna be able to see Tim today. There's nothin' to do here but wait. I'd rather be back in Dillon tryin' to get in contact with the Mayor or Paul."

Tami glanced at her watch. It was now 11:30 a.m. "Paul's on winter break. I'll call him at home this afternoon," Tami offered. "And I am part of the Mayor's re-election committee. I think she'd also take a call from me at home."

Eric, never one to like local Dillon politics, was grateful Tami felt comfortable placing these calls on Tim's behalf. He reached across the table and placed his hand over Tami's.

Tami continued, "Why don't we wait another hour to see if the specialist reads his scans. If not, we'll leave and ask Billy to call us as soon as there is news, okay?" She could feel Eric becoming more impatient, as time slowly ticked by. After Jason Street's injury, he was no longer very comfortable sitting and waiting in hospitals for news ... not when it had something to do with his girls or one of his players. She gave his hand a squeeze. "How's your neck? Is that kink working itself out?"

Eric exhaled, "I'm fine ... it's fine."

Looking up and watching her husband's limited movement, Tami raised a skeptical eyebrow. "Sugar, you can barely move your head." Looking around, there was no one within sight of their table. Tami stood up behind his chair and slowly began to massage his neck and shoulders, eventually working her way closer and closer to what had grown into a large knot. Eric's neck had always been his weak spot.

Eric closed his eyes. As much as he hated to admit it, his wife's neck rubs always took his mind off of the long wait. He allowed himself to drift away for a few moments, away from this place. He winced as she methodically worked her fingers into the large knot in his muscles. Tami knew what she was doing. He gasped in pain at one point when she applied pressure to the hardened mass, pushing her fingers in and holding them there for several minutes. When she finally released the pressure, the spasming muscle along the entire length of his neck miraculously ... let go.

The sudden relief from the gripping pain made Eric light-headed for a moment. "Thank you," he whispered, opening his eyes, surprised to see by the clock on the wall that the hour of waiting was almost over. In fact, by the time they made the walk back to the nurse's station, it would be over an hour.

As almost predicted, there was no news. It was the Friday of a holiday weekend. The Taylors suspected that was the reason for the delay. And they couldn't help but think that the delay was God-sent ... so that they had time to do something, anything to keep Tim Riggins from returning to that prison.

Before they left to go home, Tami took Billy by the arm and introduced him to the Head Nurse. She explained that he was very upset and probably not himself, but that he was in great need for information. Because of Tami, the nurse gained some compassion for the tough, aggressive, loud-mouthed young man and promised to keep him informed ... and telling him that the specialist probably wouldn't be in until later that evening, but that his brother's vital signs were still stable. Grateful to have that information, Billy was able to breathe a lot easier.


	10. Chapter 10

Title: Forward Progress (10/18)

Author: Romantique

Email:

Classification: Eric/Tami Drama/Angst

Rating: T for some language.

Summary: MAJOR SPOILERS from Season 4. Tami and Eric have been put through the ringer this season. Wouldn't you love to see them smile? At least for awhile? This fic takes place at the end of Season 4 before Season 4 airs on NBC.

Disclaimer: MAJOR SPOILERS from Season 4.

Legal: These characters do not belong to me. I'm just a fan and have not made a dime. Please email me to obtain permission to post.

_At the Lakehouse ..._

Tami drove Eric drove back to Dillon to pick up Gracie and head home for the start of their last weekend of the Winter Break. On the way home, Tami left urgent voicemail messages at the homes of both Paul Dunley and Mayor Lucy Rodell. As they arrived home, Tami received a call from the Mayor. She motioned for Eric to take Gracie so that she could talk.

"Mayor Rodell, thank you so much for returning my call. I need for you to direct me to the appropriate person. We have a resident of Dillon, a Panther State Championship Ring Holder who is currently in prison but is being severely abused by other prisoners. Who do I need to talk to in order to possibly get him moved for his own safety?"

After a moment, Mayor Rodell responded, "I don't know anyone off the top of my head. My office is closed until Monday. I can have someone from my staff research that for you and get back with you."

"Yes, please," Tami said. "I would appreciate that so much. Thank you, Mayor."

Not wanting to know any more than that, the Mayor quickly wrapped up the call.

After dinner, Billy Riggins called Eric for an update on Tim. The specialist told him that Tim had a closed skull fracture and that he was conscious. Billy had seen Tim and said he was ornery that someone had gotten the better of him. Then, he made the comment that he always knew how hard-headed Tim was. It was an attempted joke that fell flat.

Eric was surprised to hear Tim would be returned to the prison the next day. He was hoping he and Tami had a little more time to do something. Eric asked Billy to keep him informed. He didn't say what he and Tami were attempting to do, as he didn't want to unnecessarily get Billy's hopes up.

That night, Eric's neck was feeling a lot better since Tami worked the kinks out. He decided it would definitely be best for them to sleep in their own bed tonight. They were expecting an early morning furniture delivery and decided to get to bed early. Before turning in, Tami rubbed some more of Eric's athletic rub into his muscles.

The furniture was indeed delivered bright and early on Saturday.

Although even Eric had to admit the new furnishings looked really nice in their new space, he reminded Tami, "This is Christmas, yours and my birthdays, Valentine's Day, Mother's Day, Father's ..."

Tami cut him off. "Alright. I get the message."

The Taylors enjoyed the remainder of their Winter Break in their new home. Everyone was soon well rested from their move, and Eric had worked out all his moving aches and pains just in time to return to school on Monday.

_Tuesday morning ..._

Coach took off from work again to go and visit Tim. Against his better judgment, he took Julie along. He warned Julie that Tim may look bad after being beaten.

When they arrived at the prison, once again, Billy allowed Eric and Julie to visit first. Eric ushered Julie through the admitting process. Finally, they were in the Visitation Room, waiting for the inmates to be brought in. Tim gave a funny little grin upon seeing Julie Taylor sitting at the table, waiting for him. Eric stepped towards the back of the room to give the two of them a little privacy.

"Hey," Julie said, trying to keep her facial expression neutral at the sight of the bruising on the side of his shaved head.

"What are you doing here?" Tim shook his head. "This is no place for you to be. Can't imagine your Dad is thrilled that you wanted to come."

"Well," Julie was caught a little off guard but Tim's less than enthusiastic reaction, "I always thought we were friends. I just want you to know that I'm here for you."

"That's great," Tim kept it cool. "But you didn't need to come here to tell me that."

Julie felt embarrassed. "Look, you saved my life. I'm going to be in your corner ... whether you like it or not." She was beginning to get a little feisty.

Just at that moment, a nearby inmate was ogling Julie. When Tim caught wind of it, he glared at the guy and said, "Why don't you put your eyes back in your head?"

The 200-plus pound inmate reacted to what Tim said with red-faced anger and immediately jumped to his feet and rushed towards Tim.

"Son of a ...," Tim uttered, upon seeing the long gash on his left forearm.

Eric caught a glint of light reflecting off of what appeared to be a knife, and he instinctively leaped forward, across the room and pushed his daughter out of harm's way. Julie, who hadn't seen what was coming, was knocked backwards off her seat and went flying down onto the floor, landing on her backside. Before a nearby guard could rush the short distance from the other side of the long visiting table, the inmate mistook Eric's quick, protective action towards his daughter as an attack against him. In less than the blink of an eye, he made a quick and powerful slice to Eric's midsection.

"Aaaaaaaaaah," Eric gasped, looking into the face of the inmate in utter disbelief.

"Dad!" Julie screamed in horror from the floor. "Dad!"

Within seconds that seemed to move in slow motion, the guard arrived, joined by another guard, and the two wrestled the inmate to the ground, disarming him of his weapon. Another pair of guards came in and took the attacker away in a strong-armed hold. At the while, the other visitors quickly jumped out of their seats and backed far away from the altercation as whistles started blowing and more guards came storming in to escort the other prisoners out of the room, abruptly ceasing the day's visitation.

Julie scrambled up onto her feet and rushed towards her father, who was still standing and holding onto the table to keep his balance.

"Coach!" Tim reached over the table, holding onto Eric's arm to steady him.

"I'm alright," Eric said, breathing heavily. "Are you alright?" he looked down at Julie first, and then, over at Tim.

"Dad, I'm fine." Julie was wide-eyed, as her adrenaline was running at full speed.

"Yeah, he just got my arm," Tim looked again at his forearm. It was bleeding. Then, he glanced over at Eric. "Coach." Tim said, trying to remain very calm and pointing at Eric's grey Lion's polo shirt. "Look." His shirt was soaked in blood.

"Oh, no," Julie became very frightened at the sight of the red blood coming from her father. "Please!" she shouted out around her. "Somebody help us!"

"I'm okay," Eric tried to reassure her, still holding tightly onto the table. He lifted up his shirt with his other hand. "Damn," he swore under his breath, for underneath was a big, bloody mess. Suddenly, he began to feel light-headed, and he quickly adjusted his grip on the table.

Security's first priority was to get the all inmates back in their cells. The room continued to be cleared out, when a guard told Tim they were taking him to the infirmary to have his arm treated. Visibly upset at having to leave Eric and Julie without finding out if Eric was really okay, all Tim could say to them was, "Hang in there, okay?"

Julie looked back at Tim with tears in her eyes and nodded her head.

Seeing his daughter's distraught face, Eric said, "Jules, I'm okay. I promise. I think this looks a whole lot worse than it is."

Stoically, she again nodded her head and grabbed hold of her father's arm.

Prison medics soon arrived to take a look at Eric's midsection. They assisted him to sit up on top of the table, and then, instructed him to lie down on his back. One gloved medic moved his shirt and immediately applied pressure to the wound with sterile packing and then, started an IV in his left arm.

"I really don't think all this is necessary," Eric anxiously protested. "I just need some antibiotic ointment and some bandages. He didn't cut me deep." All he could feel was an intense stinging along the length of the wound.

The medic who was starting the IV said, "If it's all the same to you, sir, we'll let a doctor be the judge of that." Then, they helped Eric move from the table and onto a transport gurney.

"Where are you takin' me?" Eric continued to protest, becoming visibly upset.

"To the Emergency Room over at Midland County," the first medic said. "No argument, sir."

"Wha ... Wait a minute," he said, frantically looking around for Julie as he was being taken away. "Honey, call Buddy. Tell him what happened. And tell him I need him to come out here."

"Okay," Julie answered. Then, she quickly tried to explain to the other medic that she was there with her father from Dillon.

The medic gave her permission to ride in the back of the ambulance with her Dad.

_Emergency Room, Midland County Hospital ..._

After Julie called Buddy, she was left with the unpleasant task of having to call her mother. Her father didn't have to tell her to call. Despite her apprehension, it was the right thing to do.

"Hi Honey. Are you and your Dad heading back?" Tami asked upon receiving the call at work.

"Not exactly," Julie winced at the prospect of her mother becoming upset. "Mom, something's happened, but you have to promise me you won't freak out, okay?"

Tami's first thought was that there had been a car accident. She took in a deep breath and became concerned. "Are you and your Dad okay?" Tami wanted to know.

"Mom, please. You have to promise me," Julie went on.

"Okay ... I promise," Tami acquiesced, her concern rising by the second. "Now, what is going on?"

"There was an altercation at the prison. This guy ... he attacked Tim and Dad," Julie blurted it out. "Dad's hurt, but he's okay. I mean, he's talking, and he's normal."

"My God, Jules," Tami started to pace. "What do you mean someone attacked your Dad? Was he hurt?"

"This guy had this homemade knife, and he cut Tim's arm ... and he cut Dad across his stomach," Julie tried to explain. "We're at the Emergency Room now. Dad's in there with the doctors right now."

Trying hard to keep calm and to understand what was happening, but she was so far away. A helpless Tami blurted out, "Honey, I'm leaving now."

"Mom!" Julie shouted, interrupting her mother. "Dad asked me to call Buddy. He's on his way here. Dad was worried about you having to leave school on the second day of your new job."

"Ya'll called Buddy?" Tami repeated, understandably upset. "He's on his way?" Her pacing became more frantic. "Oh, Julie. Where is your Dad now?"

"He's in with the doctors," Julie said. "I'm here in the waiting room."

"I've got to know how Eric is doing ... that he's going to be okay," Tami mumbled to herself.

Julie felt really bad for her Mom.

"I'm won't be able to concentrate on anything here at school," Tami was thinking out loud. "I really think I need to be there."

"Mom, if you can't concentrate, that means you shouldn't be driving," Julie rightly said. "Look, I promise you I will call the minute the doctor comes out and tells me how Dad is doing, okay? I _promise_, but I swear to you that I saw Dad. He's talking. Under the circumstances, he's doing good."

"Well, alright. But if I don't hear from you soon, I am getting in the car and driving out there," Tami said in a tone that showed she meant business. "And I know the way."

_About 4 hours later ..._

Tami had been in close touch with Julie the entire day by cell phone. She waited at the front window of their new home until she heard a car drive up the driveway. It was Julie driving her Dad's rig with Buddy's SUV driving up, right behind her. Tami ran out the front door to her husband. As he exited the passenger side of Buddy's car, she rushed up to him and gave him a hard hug around his neck. There were tears in her eyes, and she was shaking.

"I'm okay," Eric said reassuringly, hugging her back. "I promise, I'm fine." He kissed the top of her head. After a moment, he said, "How about we go inside?"

Tami held onto him as he gingerly walked into the house behind Julie and Buddy. Thanks to some quick thinking on Buddy's part, Eric was wearing a clean white t-shirt that Buddy stopped and picked up on the drive back to the lake. Dillon's most passionate booster feared that seeing Eric's bloody Lion's shirt would have sent Tami Taylor over the edge.

Tami led Eric into the house and over to their new sofa, where she helped him lower himself down. For his wife's sake, Eric put his game face on, but as he bent over to sit down, he couldn't help but grab for his midsection.

Seeing the dire look on his wife's face, Eric tried to downplay it all. "It's the tape that's on the dressin', Babe. It's just pullin'."

"Hmmm," Tami was skeptical. She knew her husband only too well, and his tendency to downplay things that upset her. "I've been waiting and waiting here, by myself," Tami said with wide eyes. "Somebody better start telling me what happened out there, or I'm just going to lose it."

Eric started. "First of all, I'm okay," he looked at her with a firm, calm resolve. "They gave me a tetanus shot and antibiotics at the hospital. They stitched me up. So, don't lose sight of the fact that I'm fine."

Tami leaned down and gently lifted up his tee-shirt by its hem and saw bandages wrapped all the way across his midsection. The length of his wound was shocking to see. "My God, Eric!" she gasped. There was blood visible underneath the bandages. The surrounding skin was stained with Betadine.

Eric quickly interjected, "It looks a whole lot worse than it is. Thankfully, it's not a deep cut."

"27 stitches," volunteered Buddy. Unlike Eric, Buddy was still pretty much undone by the whole situation. "He was sliced ... with a shank." He felt his friend was sugar-coating things just a little _too_ much.

"A_ shank_?" Tami repeated in disbelief. "Why were you near anyone with a shank?"

Knowing her mother would never be satisfied until she knew all the details, Julie told her what happened ... everything.

Tami held herself and shook her head in disbelief. Just hearing the story frightened her. "Well, ya'll aren't going there ever again, do you hear me?" she said with finality in her shaky voice.

Trying to keep his voice very calm, Eric said, "Hon, Tim was cut, too. Once again, he was tryin' to look out for Julie."

"Who had no business being there," Tami countered, "and quite frankly ... neither did you, Eric."

Eric looked at her in silence. When she was like this, it was best just to let her be.

"Don't worry, Mom," Julie shook her head. "I don't think I want to go there again." Seeing Tim and her Dad attacked, and knowing that it could have been her who had been hurt rather than her Dad made a big impact on the teen. As calm as her Dad had to be for her Mom's sake, Julie was visibly shaken.

Tami caught her self, caught her anger which stemmed from fear, and she went over to her daughter. She wrapped her up in her arms and just held her.

After a few moments, Tami looked over at Eric. "I'm sorry, Hon. How is Tim?" she hadn't even asked.

"His arm was cut," Eric finally spoke. "We're still waitin' to hear somethin' from Billy." Then, Eric closed his eyes in frustration. "Hey, I've gotta question for you," he looked up at Tami. "Did Mayor Rodell ever get back to you? What happened today is a perfect example of what we've been tryin' to say."

"No, I haven't heard from her," Tami answered, slightly irritated that Eric would bring that up, now. Her mind hadn't gotten past the fact that her husband had just been attacked and her daughter had been in danger, all unnecessary from her point of view.

"What do you need Lucy for?" Buddy asked.

Eric explained what they were thinking ... about how they were trying to find a way to get Tim moved to another facility.

"Heck, Eric. Why didn't you ask me? I know someone on the Texas Prison Board," Buddy said as a matter of fact.

"You mean you'll help us?"Eric asked, almost with relief.

"I'd have to agree with you. Tim Riggins was stupid to have gotten himself into his mess, but he's non-violent. He doesn't belong in a medium security prison housed with violent offenders." Still thinking about things, Buddy added, "Yeah, I'll put a call into Jim Houseman tonight."

"Thank you," Eric said with a look of astonishment on his face. It seemed that Buddy Garrity had just moved out of the anger stage of Tami's Kubler-Ross chart and onto acceptance. Tami, on the other hand, even though she tried very hard to move out of the anger stage, she was not quite there.


	11. Chapter 11

Title: Forward Progress (11/18)

Author: Romantique

Email:

Classification: Eric/Tami Drama/Angst

Rating: T for some language.

Summary: MAJOR SPOILERS from Season 4. Tami and Eric have been put through the ringer this season. Wouldn't you love to see them smile? At least for awhile? This fic takes place at the end of Season 4 before Season 4 airs on NBC.

Disclaimer: MAJOR SPOILERS from Season 4.

Legal: These characters do not belong to me. I'm just a fan and have not made a dime. Please email me to obtain permission to post.

_The next day ..._

No matter how hard Eric tried to downplay the attack and what it did to him, Julie, and Tim, there was no denying the tightness he woke to find in his abdomen. He could hardly get out of bed without help. He was okay standing or lying down, but getting himself in between those two positions was very painful.

Before leaving for school, Tami found her husband's release paperwork from the Emergency Room with the _Aftercare Instructions_, along with his bloody shirt. According to the instructions, there was no way Eric would be able to go to school today, probably not for at least the rest of the week. Tami informed him that he was sentenced to house arrest until their family doctor released him to return to work, and she later made him an appointment for Friday afternoon. She was still so upset about what happened at the prison, more so about what _could have happened_, that Eric decided it was best for all to do as she said.

Bored out of his mind, Eric decided to try and organize his home office, especially his game tapes onto the upper shelves. So long as he didn't have to bend, he was fine. Around lunch time, Buddy called. He wasn't a bit surprised that Eric didn't go to work and asked Eric if he could stop by. Eric, thinking that Buddy could help him with some of the lifting in the office, told him it was okay.

After a time, the doorbell rang, and Eric slowly made his way to open the door. "Hey, Buddy."

"Eric. How are you getting around today?" Buddy asked, closing the front door behind him.

Moving slower than usual, Eric explained he was fine long as he didn't have to go up and down.

"I meant to tell you this yesterday, this place ... this place is fantastic," Buddy said, taking a closer look at the house. "Your view is something else."

Eric smiled and nodded. "Yeah, it is nice here. It will be even nicer when I can walk outside and enjoy my new surroundings. I was just organizin' all the game tapes in the office when you called. Would you mind helpin' me out with something?"

"Not at all, friend," Buddy answered, following him down the hallway.

"And if you want anything to drink or eat, please help yourself," Eric said.

"How about a beer?" Buddy asked. "You want one?"

The thought of anything foamy going into his belly, made Eric wince in discomfort. "No thank you, but you go on and help yourself."

A few minutes later, Buddy joined Eric in his new home office. "This is nice," Buddy remarked, looking around. "You could put a couple of recliners in here and a mini fridge." Buddy was nodding his head and smiling, getting into it.

"We'll see about that," Eric said. "We need to recover from the new furniture Tami just had to have to go with the new house."

"I noticed," Buddy remarked. "It looks really nice. Everything here is really nice." Changing the subject, he said, "So, I called Jim Houseman last night. He got back to me this morning."

"And ...," Eric shot a look up at Buddy.

"... And I told him about Tim and what has happened to him since he's been there such a short time, and what happened to you and Julie yesterday," Buddy explained. "He assured me he'd look into the matter, and he may want to talk to you and get a statement."

"I don't have a problem givin' him a statement. I had to give a statement to the prison officials before I left the hospital." Eric shook his head. "How well do you know this Prison Board guy? He's not just tellin' you what you want to hear, is he?"

"I know him," Buddy nodded. "He's a friend of a friend of mine from my TMU days. I don't think he's yanking my chain."

"Well, that's good, because this is serious," Eric returned to placing his tapes in the shelving. "I honestly don't know how long Tim is gonna be able to make it in there."

"I know you're worried, Eric. After yesterday, I can see why," Buddy said. "Hey, do you want me put that box of tapes up on the desk? Might be easier for you to reach them?" Buddy noticed his friend was wincing at making the slightest bend.

"That'd be great," Eric responded.

"Did you ever hear from Billy Riggins last night, after I left?" Buddy placed a big box of tapes on the desk. "Here, you want to hand me the tapes you want on this upper shelf?" It was clear Eric couldn't do it.

"Thanks," Eric said, passing him a handful of tapes and directing him where to place them. "Yeah, Billie called me this mornin'. It took 12 stitches to close up that gash on his arm. Like mine, luckily it wasn't a deep cut. I mean, it didn't hit a main vein or artery or muscle or even worse, a nerve."

"Glad it wasn't his throwing arm," Buddy smiled. "Hey, even us old guys still enjoy throwing the pig skin around, and I wouldn't want Tim to ever lose that." He noticed his friend was very quiet unless spoken to today. "You know, Eric, Tim's Panther Days are the _only_ reason Houseman is even looking into this for us."

Eric nodded. As long as he had lived in Dillon, he was still amazed at the way football and politics worked in the Great State of Texas. "I just hope your friend can do somethin' and do it fast," Eric said.

Eric went quiet again. Buddy stayed long enough to help Eric unpack and shelf all of his tapes. Then, Buddy flattened all the empty boxes and took them with him to help out his injured friend.

_In the Wee Hours of Friday morning ..._

Although Eric wouldn't talk about it, he had been hyper vigilant since he was attacked. Unbeknownst to him, his daughter was, too. He had a hard time falling asleep; and, for the past couple of days, he caught himself dozing during the day to make up for the sleep deficit. He was frustrated that his sleep cycle was so out of sync.

He went to bed with Tami Thursday night and pretended to sleep until he was sure Tami was. Then, he lay there in bed, unable to get up without causing himself pain, unable to shut off his racing mind. He glanced over at the clock. It read 3:15 a.m.

Even though he had plenty of accumulated sick time, using it at the new house and not being able to enjoy the lake was really eating at him. He told himself all he had to do was to convince his doctor to let him return to work on Monday, even if it was on a modified schedule. Tami could drive him to and from East Dillon High until he was able to climb up and down in his rig. The stitches were scheduled to come out in a week ... all he had to do was to come up with a way to get through the next week.

Eric's thoughts were interrupted by the sound of dogs barking, off in the distance. He had been raised with dogs as a boy and recognized the barks of these dogs as the kind that signals danger or an intruder. He listened a while longer. The barking did not subside. Bracing himself for a jolt of pain, he rolled over onto his side and raised himself up into a sitting position on his side of the bed.

"_So far, so good,"_ he thought to himself. Then, he held his wounded area with one arm for support, as he steadied himself on the night stand with the other. He then stood in one, swift motion. "Ahhhhhh," he whispered, trying to stifle his moan.

"Sugar?" Tami stirred. "Are you okay?"

Steadying his breathing, he said, "I'm sorry I woke you. I can't sleep." Then, he whispered, "Go on back to sleep, Babe. I'm goin' in the other room for awhile and watch TV."

"Are you sure you're okay?" she asked, her eyes still adjusting to the dark.

"Yeah, go on back to sleep," he said softly, blowing her a kiss as he couldn't bend down to give her one, and he quietly walked out of the room. He looked over to see that she did, indeed, quickly return to slumber.

Standing upright, his abdomen felt much better. Eric could still hear the barking in the distance, and he walked over to the big picture window in their family room. The barking was coming from the direction of the East end of the lake, and it was unrelenting. He opened the blinds. It was so light outside. _"Must be a full moon,"_ he thought to himself. He could see the figure of someone at the lake, and he closely watched the figure pushing a large object into the water.

Eric continued to watch as the barking continued at a fever pitch. He wished he could see more. Then, he got the idea of walking out the front door. Very quietly, he walked to the door and went outside. It was a little better vantage point. From there, he could see the figure was a man. There was only one man. He was walking between a truck and the water. Eric carefully stepped down the step that led into their home and onto their driveway, and he slowly made his way to the end of the pavement. From there, he could see that the truck was a flatbed tow truck. He squinted his eyes in an attempt to make out more detail. _"Damn,"_ he said to himself, unable to make out the details. He knew he sometimes needed glasses but had fought getting them at his age.

At that same moment, someone walked up behind him. "Dad."

Eric jumped inside his skin, pulling his abdomen and causing a jolt of pain. "Damn, Jules!" he tried to keep his voice down.

"Sorry," she winced, quickly figuring out she startled him badly. "I heard the dogs barking. What's going on?"

Eric's continued sense of danger caused him to say, "Get back in the house."

"Dad, someone is dumping something into the lake," she said. "Oh, my God. That truck says _'Riggins' Riggs'_. That's a car being dumped ... Is that Tim's brother dumping a car into the lake?"

Eric's eyes became huge upon the realization of what his daughter just saw with her pilot's vision, her seventeen-year-old eyes. "Julie, for the last time, get back in the house! C'mon."

He followed her into the house and quietly closed the door behind them. The two both stood inside the entryway and stared at one another in disbelief at what was happening down the hill from their home.

After Eric had a moment to catch his breath and his thoughts, he whispered, "You cannot say a word to anyone ... not until I figure out what I'm gonna do."

Julie quickly shook her head in agreement. Her eyes were still wide in disbelief. "I can't believe Tim's brother did this to him."

Eric, who long suspected that Billy was involved, was sickened by the prospect that he may need to become involved. It was obvious to him that this was bigger than the Riggins brothers.

"Dad, I can't go back to sleep, not after seeing that," Julie confided. "I'm going to make some herbal tea. Can I get you something?"

"I can't sleep, either," Eric shared. "Sure, I'll try some tea. It couldn't hurt." While Julie went into the kitchen to make tea, he continued to stand in front of the picture window, watching intently. The illegal dumping was still going on. He prayed someone else would see it and call the Sherriff's Office. He did not want to have to be the one to report this.

Eric knew Tim Riggins all too well. Tim would _never_ forgive him for turning in his older brother ... _never_. Tim's idea of loyalty was absolute, allowing for no variance. Not that Tim's view of the world would keep him from doing the right thing, but Eric admired unwavering loyalty. Standing here, now, Eric was beginning to see that loyalty was Tim Riggins' Achilles Heel. For himself, it was pride; but for Tim, it was loyalty.

Finally, he saw Billy climb into the truck and drive away with the headlights still off. The barking momentarily intensified until the truck drove out of sight. Then, gradually, the barking ceased. The sudden quiet was nothing short of eerie. Eric glanced at the clock on the wall. It read a little after 4:00 a.m.

A few minutes later, Julie came into the room carrying two steaming mugs. "It's hot," she whispered. "Where are you going to sit?" she asked, wanting to know where to place the tea.

"If I sit, that means I have to stand up," he looked absolutely miserable. "How about on the end table by this chair?" he pointed.

Julie placed the tea on a coaster so as not to mar her mother's new table.

Eric lowered himself into the chair. "Owwwww," he whispered. Sinking down into new cushy furniture with abdominal sutures was sheer torture.

Julie winced as she took a seat on the sofa, next to her Dad's chair. She watched as her father breathed through the pain. After a moment, he seemed to breathe a lot easier. "Are you okay?" she asked with concern in her eyes ... concern and fear.

Eric looked over at her. "Yeah." After a moment of sitting there, he asked her, "Are you havin' trouble sleepin' after what happened at the prison?"

Quietly, Julie looked into his eyes and nodded.

"I think we probably should tell your Momma," he said. "If it makes you feel any better, you're not the only one."

"You should tell your Momma what?" Tami said, walking unexpectedly into the room.

"Babe, did we wake you?" Eric asked.

"No," Tami shook her head. "I heard these dogs barking and barking. And then, you weren't there." She looked over at her husband.

"Mom, why don't you sit here," Julie said. "You can have this cup of tea if you want. The water's still hot, and I can make another one."

"Thanks, Sweetie. I think I will," Tami said and took Julie's freshly vacated seat, as Julie headed back for the kitchen.

"Now, let's get back to the part about what should you tell me?" Tami asked.

Eric let out a sigh. "After the attack at the prison, Julie and I both find we are havin' trouble sleepin'," he explained. "I just found out that she was havin' trouble, too. I was tellin' Julie we should tell you, when you walked in. We were goin' to tell you later today. We weren't goin' to wake you to tell you."

"Well, I'm up now, Babe." Leaning into the cushions, Tami thoughtfully said, "I'm not surprised. That was traumatic. And not only was it traumatic for both of you, it was traumatic for each of you to see the other in danger. That may have been harder than being in danger yourselves."

Eric nodded in agreement.

"I've been upset about it, as you've probably noticed," she winked. "But for you two, the incident was so much more part of your experience, a shared experience. I'm driving you to your appointment with Dr. Morgan this afternoon," she said. "Let's talk to him about this, okay?"

Julie then joined them. She took a seat next to her Mother. Tami offered her an afghan, and she covered the both of them.

"Your father was just telling me you two are having trouble sleeping," Tami put her arm around her girl. "That is perfectly understandable after what you two went through." She began to gently stroke her daughter's long, blonde tresses. "I'm taking your Dad to see Dr. Morgan this afternoon. I'm going to ask his advice as to what we should consider doing."

Like her father, Julie silently shook her head in agreement. Then, she began to sip her tea.

"There's one more thing," Eric interrupted the moment. "I just told Julie not to say a word to anyone about something we saw tonight ... but I didn't mean for her not to tell you," he said to Tami.

Julie looked up at him with wide eyes. Eric caught her concern.

"But first, you have to swear to me that _you_ won't say a word _to anyone_ ... that is until we figure things out. Alright?" Eric said with an uncharacteristic intensity.

"Alright," Tami said, chilled by the looks she was receiving by both her husband and her daughter.

"The dogs were barkin' because there was a crime bein' committed at the lake," he began, "illegal dumpin' of cars. And you will never guess who we saw doin' the dumpin'."

Tami looked at both of them, waiting for an answer. "It was Tim's brother," Julie said softly.

It took Tami a moment for everything to register. "Billy Riggins? Are you sure?"

"Yeah, it was him. I saw his truck, Mom," Julie went on. "It said _'Riggins' Riggs'_."

"Babe," Tami turned to Eric. "We've got to tell Sherriff Clarke."

"I was prayin' that someone else around here would call," Eric looked at her, "so, we wouldn't have to."

After a moment, he continued. "Tami, you realize this chop shop stuff is bigger than the Riggins brothers don't you? Tim was just the tip of the iceberg."

"Well, Hon, you've been saying all along you didn't think Tim was doing this by himself," Tami thought she was reminding him.

"Oh, this is a whole lot bigger than Billy, too," Eric tried to draw his wife a picture. "They work for someone who is makin' a ton of money, someone who is not gonna let that money go. What I want to know from the two of you is, does Billy Riggins know we moved here?"

Tami thought for a second. "Angela knew we were moving to the lake at Christmas. So, yeah, Angela and Mindy knew."

"Oh, yeah," Eric thought. "Buddy." After a beat he continued. "But why would Billy make an illegal dump right in front of our eyes?" Eric was puzzled because it made no sense. He gave Tami a very concerned look. "I don't like this. I don't like this at all. Tim's been beaten and attacked in prison, and that boy hasn't said a word about anythin' to anyone. Why would Billy continue doin' this illegal stuff after he got off scoff free?"

"I don't know, Babe, but the police already know about this crime," Tami insisted. "It's been in the paper."

"Tami, I think Billy wanted me to see this. He knows Tim trusts us. I think he wants me to do somethin', but I don't know what," Eric said. His wife and daughter looked at him with great concern. "I know one thing. None of us are sayin' a word until I can figure this out. Agreed?"

"Agreed," both Tami and Julie nodded their heads.


	12. Chapter 12

Title: Forward Progress (12/18)

Author: Romantique

Email:

Classification: Eric/Tami Drama/Angst

Rating: T for some language.

Summary: MAJOR SPOILERS from Season 4. Tami and Eric have been put through the ringer this season. Wouldn't you love to see them smile? At least for awhile? This fic takes place at the end of Season 4 before Season 4 airs on NBC.

Disclaimer: MAJOR SPOILERS from Season 4.

Legal: These characters do not belong to me. I'm just a fan and have not made a dime. Please email me to obtain permission to post.

_Friday Afternoon ..._

As promised, Tami drove Eric to see their family doctor, and as planned, Eric was able to convince Dr. Morgan to allow him to return to work on Monday, for 4 hours a day. He had to promise both the doctor and his wife he wouldn't drive, lift, or overdo until his next appointment. Still experiencing a lot of pain and tightness, he thought it wouldn't be difficult to keep his promise. The next appointment was scheduled for 7 days out to have the sutures removed.

Tami also facilitated a talk between Eric and the doctor about his and Julie's recent sleeping difficulties. For Julie, the doctor and Tami agreed that some counseling might be appropriate, using relaxation techniques and meditation. For Eric, he wrote a prescription. Tami, who was also affected, decided she was somewhere in between her husband and her daughter in terms of approach to treatment.

During the drive back to the lake, Tami asked Eric, "Are you going to call the Sherriff's Office?"

That was what Eric was afraid she was going to ask. "I haven't decided what I'm gonna do." Then, he sighed, "I have a bad feelin' about this."

"Well, Sugar, I have a bad feeling about what will happen if you _don't_ report this," Tami looked over at him while stopped at a red light. "I mean, it literally happened in our new front yard."

Eric let out another sigh of frustration. "Don't you think I've thought about that?" He looked over at her. "I just wish I could talk to Billy, find out what's goin' on."

Suddenly realizing her husband was more upset over this than she'd realized, she reached over and placed her hand over his. "How do you even know if he would be able to talk to you about it or would tell you the truth?" she asked very softly.

"I don't," Eric answered in admitted confusion. "Tim hasn't said anything to me about anything. He doesn't want anyone else involved with these people. But with Billy, like I said, it's almost as if he wants me to stop this because he can't."

A thought suddenly occured, as a lightning bolt, and she raised an eyebrow. "Hon, you don't think that Billy's being threatened or blackmailed, do you? I mean, could this have something to do with Tim being targeted in prison?"

"I was thinkin' the same thing. I just didn't want to say it out loud because it sounded too crazy," he said. "However, listenin' to you say it, it doesn't."

"I see what you mean about wanting to talk to Billy ... just to see if we're on the right track, here" she said. "But how do we do that?"

"We?" Eric looked over at her with raised eyebrows. "I don't want you involved in this, Tami."

Tami shook her head. "Oh, no. If you're going to talk to him, I want to be there, too. I think he's less likely to lie if I'm with you. Besides, I don't want you to do this by yourself."

There. She had him check mated. Knowing his wife all too well, he had no choice but to relent.

"Alright. We need to talk to him in a public place," Eric was thinking out loud. "Maybe I can get him to meet us at Applebee's tonight. Do you want me to call him?"

"Let me call first to see if we can get a sitter for Gracie tonight, okay?" Tami answered. "Julie's working tonight."

_Later that night, Applebee's ..._

Friday nights at Applebee's weren't what they used to be. Due to the down economy, it was surprisingly easy for Tami and Eric to get a table with no waiting. Thanks to their daughter¸ they were able to get a table in the dining area, off in the corner. They ordered their beverages and a couple of appetizers and waited for Billy Riggins to arrive. After a time, Tami saw him walk in and she waived him over.

"How are y'all doing?" Billy said as he approached the Taylors with his typical demeanor that was both nervous and charming. Then, he turned to Eric. "Hey, man. How are you doing?" he asked. Concern for Eric after the attack was written all over his face.

Eric nodded, as he tightened his jaw. "I'm comin' right along. How's Tim?" he asked.

Billy looked off to the side as he took a seat, pained by the question. "He's trying to survive."

Trying to move things towards the reason for asking Billy to meet them, Tami said, "Thank you for meeting us here on such short notice. We really appreciate it."

"Yeah, no problem," Billy said. The waitress came over and asked him if he wanted something to drink. He saw that Tami had ordered a glass of wine, so he ordered a beer. After the waitress left, Billy asked, "So, what's up?"

Physically uncomfortable and angry about being put in the position he found himself in, Eric came right to the point. Speaking in a very low voice, he said, "Billy, I saw you at the lake at between 3:30 and 4:00 this mornin'."

Billy strained to keep a straight face. "I don't know what you're talking about."

Clenching his jaw and tilting his head, Eric made eye contact with the man and said, "Yeah, Billy. You do." After a beat, he added, "But what I don't understand is, why would you commit a crime right in front of where we live?" After being met with a wall of silence, Eric continued, "I'm gonna ask you a question, and you need to tell me the truth." Eric leaned over and spoke even more softly, "Are you bein' blackmailed?"

Billy looked down. He had been made. "Look, if I don't do what they tell me to do, Tim's as good as dead. That beating ... the one that sent him to the hospital? That's what happened when I refused to go along with them."

Not wanting to know specifically who "they" were, Tami asked, "Are you telling us that _'they'_ can have Tim beat up in prison?"

Billy nodded his head. "They're everywhere ... all over Dillon. Some of your Lions are even in with them."

"Some of _my_ players?" Coach asked with surprised on his face, placing his hand against his own chest.

"Yeah. Your quarterback, Vince Howard, for one," Billy whispered back. "And that guy, Tinker, they've recently been working on him."

Eric and Tami went silent.

Seeing that they weren't convinced, Billy continued, "Remember that shooting when Calvin Brown was killed? Vince was there."

Trying very hard not to change the expression on his face, Eric clenched his jaw. He knew of Vince's past involvement with Calvin and some gang bangers, but Vince promised he was no longer in a gang. Hearing this, plus the thought of Dallas Tinker being approached, wrenched Eric's heart. Tami, on the other hand, didn't do a very good job of hiding her surprise.

"Why are you surprised?" Billy continued to speak in hushed tones. "Look, they threaten them the same way they threaten me. That's how they operate."

Tami's hands were clasped together, the tips of her fingers touching her mouth. "Let me ask you something. How do you see this all ending?"

"Honestly?" Billy seemed surprised by the question. "I'm afraid for my life. I'm afraid for the life of my wife and my son. And I'm very afraid for the life of my brother." There was sheer terror in his eyes.

"I understand," Eric locked eyes with Tim's older brother. "Listen. If I can find someone who can help us ... someone who's outside of Dillon ... would you be willin' to talk to them and back me up? I don't want to get your hopes up, but we want to try and see if we can get Tim moved to another facility."

Billy erratically began to shake his head. "Oh, no. I don't want you to talk to anyone about this. It's too dangerous."

"And what you're doin' isn't?" Eric asked him. "Can't you see that you're not doin' this situation any good. You're bein' manipulated to do what they want, and they're usin' Tim to control you. They're always gonna want more. You'll never be free of it."

"Billy," Tami chimed in. "Listen to Eric, please. He's right. This is bigger than all of us, and we need some big help. Would you at least let us try?"

Billy's eyes were suddenly vacant. "Who is the person you think will help?"

"_Might_ be able to help," Eric corrected him. "I haven't spoken to him yet. We've been askin' ourselves that same question, who can help us? There's a man who sits on the Texas Prison Board. I want to talk to him and let him know what's goin' on in his prison. And see if we can get Tim moved."

"You're not going to go to the cops here in Dillon?" Billy wanted some reassurance.

Rubbing his forehead, Eric replied, "I don't think they'll be able to do us any good. That's why I didn't go to the Sherriff today." Eric tapped Billy on the arm and looked the younger man right in the eye. "Have you got a better idea?"

Billy sat there. He felt guilty for Tim taking the blame. He was tired of being afraid, and he never bargained for his brother's life to be in danger. As the Taylors said, there was no way out of this. "Okay," he finally said. "Call the guy."

"Alright," Eric said. "You know that this conversation can't go beyond the three of us for now, right? It would not be wise to say anything to Tim or to Mindy ... nor to anyone."

"I understand," Billy said. Then, looking down in a shameful fashion, he finally said, "Coach Taylor ... Tami ... I'm sorry. There's just been no one I could trust. I didn't know what to do."

Chewing on the inside of his bottom lip, Coach kept his mouth closed tight and just looked at the man. He didn't know what to say. He was angry that Billy wasn't smarter, stronger. He was disgusted and angry that he and Tami had been drug into the matter. And he was shocked to find out some of his players may be involved with criminal activity.

Finally, Eric said, "I'll be in touch with you the first part of the week. I'm not drivin´ yet¸ so I won't be visitin' Tim this week. Please tell him we said 'hello,' and that I'll be seein' him as soon as I'm able to drive again."

"I'll do that, Coach," Billy said. Then, he downed the rest of his beer, reached into the pocket of his jeans and pulled some bills out of his pocket and tossed them on the table. "You all have a good night," he said as he left the Taylors to finish their meal.

As Billy walked away, Eric let out a huge sigh and scrubbed his face with his hands. "Oh, Babe," he continued to rub his eyes. "After we finish here, I need you to drive me over to Buddy's."

"Alright, Sugar," she said. And she reached over and placed her hand on his arm and gave him a supportive squeeze.

_Saturday Morning, Bartin Creek Golf Course, Austin ..._

Last night, after making several phone calls, Buddy was able to find out that Jim Houseman was would be playing golf on Saturday in Austin. Houseman was set for an 11 a.m. tee time, and told Buddy that he could see Eric and Buddy before then, if they were willing to meet him at the golf course. Buddy jumped at the opportunity.

Buddy picked up Eric at his home and drove them out to the Resort. Upon arriving, they made their way to the Hill Country Dining Room.

"Hey, Jim," Buddy cackled upon spotting the older gentleman seated at a table secluded in the corner.

"Buddy," the distinguished, older gentleman extended his hand.

After Buddy shook, he said, "Jim Houseman, I'd like you to meet Eric Taylor, the man I told you about when we spoke on the phone."

Mr. Houseman extended his hand, as he and Eric made their introductions. Jim Houseman was a fan of all Texas football and was well aware and of Eric's bio and was a fan. He couldn't help but notice when Eric winced as he took a seat at the table beside the gentleman. "Buddy told me what happened to you last week while visiting the prison in Midland County. I was so sorry to hear about it. I will take care of all your related medical bills, and I want to assure you that we've launched an investigation into that incident, as well as the prior incident that sent inmate Riggins to the hospital."

"Well, thank you, sir. But over the last 36 hours, we've unfortunately come across some more information that might both shed some light and further complicate the matter," Eric began to explain. And then, Eric went into a full account of recent developments, including gang infiltration into his team. "Nothing against our law enforcement in Dillon, in fact, I have a good relationship with the Sherriff's Department. But with the reach this element seems to have, I hope you can understand my hesitance to go to them. I, uh, ..."

Mr. Houseman stopped the hesitant high school football coach. "You've got good instincts. I suspect that's what makes you such a winning coach. You did the right thing going outside of your local jurisdiction."

Relieved by receiving confirmation he was doing the right thing, Eric tentatively shook his head.

"This needs to be handled by the TBI in conjunction with my office," the older gentleman continued. "I'll tell you where these scumbags went wrong," he said, looking up at Eric and Buddy. "They unwittingly got themselves involved in Texas football, and now, that's a sin." The man gave a knowing, Texas nod and tight grin to emphasize the irony in that statement. "Coach, do you have time to see go to the Bureau's office in Austin this afternoon?"

Eric glanced at his ride. Buddy indicated that would be fine. The two Dillonites sat at the table, drinking coffee as Mr. Houseman proceeded to make a series of phone calls on his cell.

_A few hours later, Texas Bureau of Investigation, Austin ..._

Eric and Buddy waited in the sparsely furnished, vacant reception area, typical in a government building. Buddy Garrity was uncharacteristically quiet which suited Eric just fine. It had already been a long day, a lot of walking¸ and a lot of riding in the car. Eric was really beginning to feel it in his midsection. He reached into his pocket and pulled out a tin of aspirin, and he popped a couple with nothing to drink, on an empty stomach.

A few minutes later, Eric was ushered into an equally sparse office where he was introduced to Field Agent Kenneth Larsen. The tall, African American extended his hand.

"Mr. Taylor, Mr. Houseman called and gave me a thumbnail sketch of the situation," the Agent began. "The first step is that we're going to need to interview you and take your formal statement. This information is then held as strictly confidential except to the Bureau. There are _'Whistleblower statutes'_ that are designed to protect and encourage citizens, such as yourself, to come forward with pertinent information."

The realization that there were laws in place to protect a perceived _'snitch'_ made Eric's empty, aspirin-filled stomach churn even more. All he could do was pray he was doing the right thing for his family and for Tim. Eric was then lead to a room with two other agents who were seated at a long table with video recording equipment. For the next two hours, Eric gave his statement and answered all their questions.

_Later at home ..._

Eric arrived home. To say this had been the longest day would have been an understatement.

"Oh, Honey," Tami greeted him with the greatest of sympathy. She watched as her husband literally dragged himself inside. She walked up to him and wrapped her arms around him and hugged him tight.

Eric fell into the welcome of her embrace. The two stood in the entry way silently holding one another for a time.

"Did you have something to eat?" Tami whispered in his ear. "I made pasta and chicken for dinner."

"Hmmmmm. Sounds good," he whispered back. Then, he kissed her forehead, and the two headed for the kitchen.

"Was it awful?" Tami asked, thinking she already knew the answer.

"It was long, and it was drainin'," Eric said, raking his finger through his hair.

"I couldn't even imagine," she said with a softened sincerity, as she began to carry two bowels of food to the set table. "Do you want some wine with dinner?"

Lost in thought, Eric was a beat behind. "No. I think I'm gonna take one of those sleepin' pills, so I'd better not. Would you like some wine?"

"Yeah, I think I would," she said. She came back over to him with empty hands and put her hand on his shoulder.

Eric leaned down and gave her a soft little kiss. Then, he proceeded to open a bottle of Pinot for Tami.

"You can go ahead and take a seat. I'll go get the girls," she said, giving him one more little peck.

A minute later, Tami returned and put Gracie into her booster seat. Eric watched and had the fleeting thought that he'd be glad when he could pick up his daughter, again. Then, Julie bounded in wearing her Applebee's uniform.

"Hey, Monkey Noodle," Eric smiled at his oldest. "Are you gonna have some of your Mom's pasta before headin' off?"

Julie nodded. "Yeah, I've got a little time before I leave," she said and took a seat beside him. "How are you, Daddy?"

Tami, who was cutting up some chicken for their youngest was glad Julie asked.

"I'm alright," he gave her a weak, little smile. "Honey, this is really good," he turned his head to compliment his wife's cooking.

"Yeah, Mom, I love the basil and fresh garlic in this," Julie chimed in. Her vegetarianism really appreciated always praised her Mom's use of spices. "And Dad didn't even notice that the chicken is organic."

After a moment, Eric looked over at Julie. "You remember what I asked you not to say anything about?"

"Of course I do," Julie answered, poking her fork into another bite of pasta.

"Well, I'm takin' care of it. All you need to know, and this is also not to be repeated outside this family, is that some law enforcement at the State level is gettin' involved," he explained. "We just gotta let them take care of it, and I don't know how or when that will be."

"That's good, but what did they say about Tim?" Julie asked, very concerned. "I mean, do they even care?"

"Actually, yeah, they do," Eric said. Without changing his expression, he widened his glance to include Tami. "It seems that Texas football once again shines good fortune onto me and the Riggins brothers." Eric shook his head in an understated astonishment.

"Sooooooo, that's good?" Julie stated it as a question, looking to her Dad's face for confirmation.

"Yeah, Honey. Nothin' you need to worry about," he nodded, again with no change of expression. Finally, he threw her a bone. "I'll let you know more, as soon as I do."

The family continued to eat their meal. By the heavy look on Eric's face, neither Julie nor Tami was convinced there was nothing to worry about.


	13. Chapter 13

Title: Forward Progress (13/18)

Author: Romantique

Email:

Classification: Eric/Tami Drama/Angst

Rating: T for some language.

Summary: MAJOR SPOILERS from Season 4. Tami and Eric have been put through the ringer this season. Wouldn't you love to see them smile? At least for awhile? This fic takes place at the end of Season 4 before Season 4 airs on NBC.

Disclaimer: MAJOR SPOILERS from Season 4.

Legal: These characters do not belong to me. I'm just a fan and have not made a dime. Please email me to obtain permission to post.

_Tuesday, Texas Department of Corrections, Midland County …_

Billy Riggins had just finished his weekly visitation with his younger brother and was leaving the facility when, to his surprise, Eric Taylor slowly walked up to him in the parking lot, trying to unnoticeably favor his midsection.

"Hey, Billy?" Eric said, making a deliberate effort not to startle the man.

"Coach Taylor?" Billy turned around, surprised to see him there. "I thought you said you weren't coming this week?"

Eric decided it best to cut to the chase. "I talked to someone I think can help us, but I need for you to talk to them, too."

"Uh, sure," Billy responded. "I told you I would."

"Good. Because someone is with me, now," Eric tried to keep his voice down, "and he wants to talk to you."

Eric then led Billy a few cars over and motioned for him to get into the front seat of the black SUV rental with darkened windows, and Eric climbed up into the back seat, hugging his abdomen.

As Billy closed the door of the care, the man in the driver's seat said, "Billy Riggins, I'm Field Agent Kenneth Larsen of the Texas Bureau of Investigation." The Agent handed his card to the dumbfounded younger man. The Agent continued, "Mr. Taylor has already told us what's been happening in the town of Dillon. He gave us a statement, and I'm also going to need a statement from you."

"Look, man. I'm not a snitch," Billy tried to explain his position. "If anyone finds out I'm talking to you, I might as well be dead."

"Billy," Eric said sharply from the back seat, "there's more than the TBI involved. Remember when you and I discussed that this whole thing is bigger than us, bigger than Dillon? We need someone bigger than us to look into this. Now, you gotta trust me. It's time for you to trust someone."

Billy turned his head and saw the solid sheet of resolve on Eric's face. And slowly, the two men locked into the intensity in their stare and eventually nodded to one another.

A little calmer now, Billy said, "But what about Tim?" Billy directed his comments to the Agent. "Don't you know they have inmates in the prison who are watching me and Tim like a hawk?"

"We have prison administrators who know exactly what's going on," Agent Larsen countered. "Actually, you and your brother are probably safer now than you've been in weeks."

"He's tellin' you the truth, Billy," Eric verified. "There's a man on the Texas Prison Board who's in on this investigation. It seems there are gentlemen at the State level who are genuinely peeved that crime has infiltrated Texas football."

Thanks to Eric, Agent Larsen then saw an opening for him to score a few points, and he ran with it. "Yes, I understand you played for the Dillon Panthers, yourself," the Agent asked the former Panther.

"Yeah," Billy was surprised to find the Agent knew he played football. "But that was a long time ago."

"Well, what if I told you that as a former player, there was a way for you to make all your troubles go away and help your brother get moved to a minimum security facility ... maybe even with a reduced sentence?" the Agent asked. "Then, do you think you would you be interested in talking with me?"

"Are you serious?" Billy asked in disbelief and with serious mistrust. "What's the catch? There has to be a catch."

Eric sat in silence, as the conversation happening in the front seat of the car parked in the prison parking lot continued.

"We need to infiltrate the gang to obtain evidence," Agent Larsen began. "After interviewing you, I'll be able to form a better idea of what we need, but basically, we'd need for you to make contact with the person who's been directing your activity ... and we would need to have you wired."

Billy lowered his head and buried his face in his hands. "Man, this is crazy," he mumbled to himself, shaking his head in his hands. Then, he raised his head and made eye contact with the Agent. "If they catch me, I'm dead ... Tim's dead."

Still sitting in silence, Eric's thoughts were racing. He was worried things might come to something like this, but now that he was seeing it play out with his own eyes, there was nothing to feel good about. Morally, he could not influence Billy one way or the other. This had to be Billy's decision.

"You're dead anyway," Agent Larsen countered. As it was apparent that the _'good cop'_ approach wasn't working very well, the Agent decided it was time to play the _'bad cop.'_ "It's just a matter of time until they have no more use for you, or they ask you to do something you can't do ... such as kill for them." After a beat of silence, the Agent went on. "Plus, if you don't cooperate, you'll go to prison just like your brother, only you won't have the TBI or a Texas Prison Board member to give a rat's ass about you or your brother when you're targeted on the inside."

Billy turned around to look at Eric's face for a reality check, only to find Eric staring vacantly out the darkened rear side window. Clearly, Eric was avoiding eye contact with Tim's older brother.

Billy suddenly felt very alone. Taking a hard, dry swallow, Billy asked, "Can I think about this?"

"Sure," Agent Larsen answered. "You have 30 seconds." Clearly by his tone of voice, the Agent wasn't messing around.

"Did you know about his part, Coach?" Billy turned around again, pleading to Eric for an answer.

Continuing his stare out the window, Eric slowly shook his head, no. Agent Larsen watched Eric through his rearview mirror.

Soon, the Agent said, "Time's up, Billy. I need an answer, now. Are you going to cooperate, or do I put you under arrest?"

With hollow eyes, Billy robotically said, "You give me no choice." Billy took a hard, hard swallow. "I'll cooperate."

Eric wanted to crawl out of the car. He did not want to be there. Whether or not he liked Billy Riggins or whether or not he respected him for setting less than a stellar example for Tim, Eric did not enjoy watching the man being blackmailed to do the right thing. He did not enjoy watching fear control the man.

_Later that night, at the Taylor home ..._

Eric lay in bed staring up at the ceiling. Tami was nearby, brushing her teeth before going to bed herself.

"Hon, are you going to be able to sleep tonight?" she asked in between spits into the sink. She was trying to delicately remind him to take a sleeping pill after another taxing day. She knew that once again, he wasn't able to lay low, as his doctor had instructed.

Her husband didn't answer. His mind had drifted off, thinking about what happened earlier in the day at the prison.

Tami then came into the room to set the alarm clock, climbed into bed next to her husband, and turned off the lamp on the nightstand. Eric winced in discomfort when the mattress moved.

"Hon, are you going to be able to go to sleep?" she gently asked again, snuggling up close to him. She lovingly stroked his forearm.

"I took a sleepin' pill about ten minutes ago," he said, still staring up at the ceiling in the dark. Through no choice of his own, once again, he had not taken it easy on his abdomen today, and he was paying for it tonight.

"Was it another awful day?" Tami asked, continuing to gently rub his forearm.

"Brutal," he whispered. "Today was brutal." He noticed her touch. "I just hope I did the right thing."

"Eric," Tami said in hushed tones, continuing to gently stroke his arm. "You gave Billy Riggins the benefit of the doubt. You did that for Tim. No one else would have done that. Your heart is in the right place; and for that reason, you must know that you did do the right thing." She then raised up on her elbow to look him in the eye. "I've watched you agonize over whether or not to report the dumping to the Sherriff." She then took his hand in hers. "Your gut told you to take this to someone who had more pull and power than our local Police, and you did that." She gave his hand a loving squeeze. "It's time for you to let it go ... hand it up to God. It's not your burden anymore."

Eric let go of Tami's hand and extended his arm to her. She quickly accepted by lying back down and placing her head in the crook of his shoulder and snuggling in close.

"You're right, Babe," he whispered, holding her closer to him. He moved his head so that their heads were touching. He closed his eyes, and in a few minutes time, the two had drifted off to sleep.

_Next day, East Dillon High ..._

Afternoon practice for training and conditioning, before team tryouts for the following season, was starting this week. Before practice began, most of the remaining underclassmen and some possible new recruits were in the locker room suiting up. From his desk in his office, Eric asked Coach Traub to see if he could find Vince Howard and Dallas Tinker and bring them in to see him.

"Coach," a suited up Vince said upon entering Eric's office, a few minutes later, "you wanted to see us?"

Tinker was right behind him.

"You fellas want to have a seat?" Eric motioned to the pair of chairs that were directly in front of his desk. "And Tinker, would you please close the door behind you, son?"

Tinker did as he was asked, and the two players took a seat.

Still seated, Eric leaned forward on his elbows on the desk and then, he began scrubbing the stubble on his chin and mouth with his hand. "I need for the two of you to be honest with me. I would hope by now that both of you know you can trust me."

"Yeah, Coach," Tinker easily acknowledged.

"Sure," Vince nodded, as if it was a matter of fact.

"Good," Eric said with a steely glare. Then, he continued. "The two of you aren't in any kind of trouble, are you?"

The look on the faces of the two guys was one of surprise. Both boys told their coach that they were not in any kind of trouble.

With his head propped up in his hand and his fingers covering his lips, Eric continued to glare at the boys, giving them ample time and space to talk to him. Instead, the silence was becoming uncomfortable.

After a moment of silence that lasted forever, Vince finally flatly asked, "Is that it?"

Coach glared with an even greater intensity at Vince, with no change of expression on his face and then, he turned to glare at Tinker. Despite his intensity, there was still no response from either boy.

Finally, Eric spoke again. "You both know there's a criminal element in this town." Eric then looked directly at Vince and his glare bored down on him. "Your friend, Calvin Brown, was killed by that element."

Vince's eyes narrowed, and his forehead furrowed, as he tried to make sense of his coach's statement. "I've had several friends die over the years _'by that element.'_ A lot of us on the team could say the same."

After a beat, Tinker asked, "What's goin' on here, Coach?"

Eric took in a deep breath. "What's goin' on here is that everyone in this town is aware there's a criminal element that lives among us, and I've got more than a suspicion that it has infiltrated my football team. And _that_ is very concernin' to me." And then, he let out a sigh. "I don't mind tellin' you that both of your names have been floated out there as havin' some kind of a relationship with this criminal element."

Both Vince and Tinker had a look of shock and surprise on their faces.

"Who told you that?" Vince demanded to know.

"You know I can't tell you that," Eric said. "This is where you've got to trust me. I've got nothin' to gain by tellin' you this. I'm tryin' to help you."

"Well, you don't have to worry about helpin' us," Vince insisted. "Whoever told you that is full of it."

Tinker joined in. "Coach, I don't have nothin' to do with the gangs."

Seeing that he was getting nowhere, he said, "You two have to promise me that if you are ever contacted or approched by the gangs or any other criminal element, you'll come and talk to me. Please. This is very important. The Lions is your family. And I am not gonna have the sanctity of our team, our family, infiltrated by this kinda crap. Do you two understand?"

"Yeah, Coach," Vince shook his head.

"Yeah, I promise," Tinker also shook his.

"Alright," Eric finally relented, snapping a pencil on the desktop. "Y'all go and finish gettin' ready for practice." He carefully studied the two guys as they left his office. Frustrated, he couldn't tell with any certainty if one or both of them had just told him the truth. And if they hadn't, Eric also knew they each had a lot at stake in their lives outside of school. Unlike his coaching days at Dillon High, he could not bring himself to judge these players. At least, he thought, he had been at East Dillon long enough to have learned not to judge.

Later, at practice that afternoon, he couldn't help but notice that Tinker and Vince kept to themselves more than usual. Particularly, he noticed that the two did not acknowledge one another nor did they make eye contact with one another. He felt that this was the result of the little meeting he had with them before practice and feared he may have hit a nerve.


	14. Chapter 14

Title: Forward Progress (14/18)

Author: Romantique

Email:

Classification: Eric/Tami Drama/Angst

Rating: T for some language.

Summary: MAJOR SPOILERS from Season 4. Tami and Eric have been put through the ringer this season. Wouldn't you love to see them smile? At least for awhile? This fic takes place at the end of Season 4 before Season 4 airs on NBC.

Disclaimer: MAJOR SPOILERS from Season 4.

Legal: These characters do not belong to me. I'm just a fan and have not made a dime. Please email me to obtain permission to post.

_Three weeks later ..._

Days turned into weeks, and Eric Taylor found himself more and more isolated from the matter that brought him before the Texas Prison Board and the TBI. Now that an investigation had been set in motion, he was forced to stay clear of the Riggins brothers or else risk himself becoming a target of the investigation. Wisely, he made the decision that he couldn't afford to put himself, his family, or his team in any deeper. There was nothing he could do but wait in an information vacuum. Even Agent Larsen told him he would have no information until the investigation was concluded.

So every morning, he scanned the newspaper for any morsel of news, and every evening, he watched the local news. So far, there was nothing.

If that isolation wasn't bad enough, Eric also dealt with distances at the high school. After his frank discussion with Vince and Tinker, he couldn't help but notice the rift that was now there between him and two of his top players. Even Julie recently commented on noticing their distance from her at school, as well. Not that she was tight with either one of them, but they had always waived at her, acknowledged her presence at school. She was, after all their coach's daughter, but that unspoken ritual was not the case, anymore. Eric did not dare share with his daughter the reason why.

The isolation Eric felt was similar to what he felt at the very beginning of this ordeal when he first began to visit Tim at the prison and the isolation he experienced when he was fired as Head Coach of the Dillon Panthers. While Tami continued to be very understanding and supportive, he hadn't shared all the details of the investigation with her, in an effort to protect her. He didn't want her to know all the details and often found himself wishing that he didn't know.

If there were any silver linings, the first was that Eric's abdomen was finally healing. The truth of the matter was that the wound was much, much deeper than he had let on with his family, friends, and co-workers. The second was that Buddy Garrity, and even Jason Street, were coming around, as far as Tim was concerned.

Since the Thanksgiving holiday, Buddy had been dating Angela Collette on a steady basis and was becoming a little closer to her daughter, Mindy and her baby. Buddy was beginning to see how Billy and Tim were a part of that family which caused him to see a different side of the Riggins brothers.

Through Buddy, his daughter Lyla, who was still away at Vanderbilt, became privy to some of the hardships Tim had endured while in prison. She was aware of his skull fracture and the attack on Tim and Eric. She had been corresponding with Tim in prison and also kept in touch with Jason. As Eric was very aware that Julie kept in touch with Lyla, Eric suspected it was Lyla who had been responsible for Buddy's and Jason's change of heart. Because Eric wasn't able to visit Tim until this investigation was concluded, he was glad to hear that Tim's friends and loved ones were slowly but surely beginning to be there for him.

Now, it was the end of winter and the very beginning of spring. The lake was beginning to come to life, as buds of wildflowers were beginning to make their appearance on the banks of the lake, painting a new seasonal canvas the Taylors had yet to see. On this Saturday morning, the air was clean and crisp. Dressed in his sweats, Eric took his cup of hot coffee out on the porch at the front of the house, took a seat, and enjoyed the very reason they bought this house ... the view of the lake. A few minutes later, Tami joined him.

"Oh, Hon. Isn't this just like heaven?" Tami asked, taking a seat in the chair beside him. The soothing sound of birds and the sunlight sparkling across the water of the lake was nothing short of gorgeous.

"It is," Eric looked over at her and reached for her hand. "It's peaceful."

A moment later, Gracie came toddling out the front door and suddenly, the peace and quiet was gone.

"Sorry," Julie apologized to her folks, as she came running behind her little sister. "She escaped."

Eric chuckled. "She does that."

Julie glanced out towards the water and said, "Hey, Dad, isn't that Vince Howard?" And she pointed to the approaching figure.

"Yeah, it is," Eric nodded.

Less than a minute later, Vince made his way to the front of the house. "Coach," he nodded. "Mrs. Taylor. Coach, I was wondering if we could talk."

"Yeah, sure," Eric said.

At that instant, Tami stood up and picked up her youngest. "I think I'll take Gracie inside and get breakfast started. Would you like to join us for breakfast?" she looked over at Vince.

Vince smiled at his new guidance counselor. "Oh, no thank you, m'am. I just need to talk to Coach for a few minutes."

"Well, alright," she replied. "Just so you know, there's plenty if you change your mind." Tami carried Gracie into the house.

Julie gave an understated little wave to Vince and followed her mother into the house, leaving the guys to talk in private.

"What brings you all the way out here?" Eric asked his first string quarterback.

Vince walked closer towards his coach. "You told me you could help me if I was approached by the gangs," he said in a very low voice.

Still holding his coffee cup, Eric looked up at Vince. "Yeah, I did. Would you like to sit down?" Eric offered him a chair.

"No, I'd rather stand," Vince said. "Um, you noticed that my mother had a bad drug problem," he began. "She had to go to rehab, and she's much better now."

Eric silently shook his head in acknowledgement of what he was saying.

"We don't have insurance, and she couldn't wait for State assistance," Vince continued. "The waiting list was six months long. She would've died if I hadn't gotten her into a private rehab. The only problem was the private rehab cost a lot of money ... more money than I make working for Big Mary."

Eric was listening very carefully.

"I went to Big Mary and told him I needed money," Vince explained. "I asked him for an advance, but he couldn't help me. So, I had to find a way to get some money ... fast." Vince looked down. "I did what I had to do to get the money for my Mom," he said quietly. "It was either that or let her die." Looking up, he met Eric's stare. "And then ... I made the decision to leave the gang. But you and I both know you can never leave. So, I'm here. I don't know if you can do anything¸ but I'm here."

Eric's heart sunk, and he took a hard swallow. He had stuck his neck out for this kid. Vince had come so far, or so Eric wanted to believe. He put on his best poker face. "Well, I'm glad you came to me," Eric slowly shook his head. After a pause, he asked, "What are you doin' today?"

"Nothing," Vince answered.

"Good," Eric continued. "I'm gonna make a couple of phone calls. Then, you are gonna come with me."

Not having any other place to turn, Vince said, "Okay."

"Can you just tell me one thing?" Eric tilted his head. "Did they get hold of Tinker?"

Vince convincingly nodded his head. "No, Coach. They tried their best, but no. They didn't get Tinker."

"Alright," Eric said flatly. "Come on inside and have some breakfast while I place a couple of calls."

Vince then followed his coach into the house.

_Enroute to the Texas Bureau of Investigation, Austin ..._

During the drive to Austin, Eric tried to prepare his young player for what was in store. This was now Eric's third encounter with the Bureau, and he felt that he had as good a read as anyone regarding their approach to the investigation.

Vince sat in the passenger seat of Eric's rig with his arms defiantly crossed in front of him. "Coach," Vince said with unmistakable fear in his eyes ... the same fear Eric saw in Billy Riggins' eyes. "I can't talk to them."

"Listen to me," Eric said. "No one is gonna find out you said anything to anyone. I know for a fact that there are several guys they've already talked to. The only thing you're gonna to be able to verify for them, that they don't already know, is how far this has gone ... that it's gone all the way to a high school football team." Eric looked over at his quarterback. "I vouched for you with them, Vince. I understand you're the man of your house, but under the law, you're a kid. You are not the persons they're after. So, you'd do best to cooperate with the Bureau and then, get out of their way."

"How much do I tell them?" Vince wanted to know.

"You'd best tell them everything. I'll be with you," Eric said. "That's part of the deal I made this morning."

"You want me to tell them I brought you a gun?" Vince asked with a raised eyebrow.

Eric thought very carefully. "Well, maybe you don't want to bring that part up unless they do." After a moment, he continued. "Look son, you've come a long, long way since I first met you. I understand why you did what you did ... but you do now understand that turnin' to a gang, after you promised me you'd never do that again was the wrong thing to do. Don't you?"

Vince stoically shook his head. "Yeah, I do."

"Well, you tell them that. Show some remorse, but you also tell them that under the circumstances with your Mom, you felt you had no choice," Eric said. "And do not protect the son-of-a-bitch who put you in this situation. Do you understand?"

"But what if that son-of-a-bitch finds out?" Vince argued.

"He's not _ever _gonna find out," Eric told him. "You're not just dealin' with Dillon here. There are some big agencies involved in this investigation." Taking in a deep breath, he continued. "Look, I got no choice but to trust the Bureau. It seems to me that you've also got no choice."

Vince looked over at his coach. "You really think we can? Trust them, I mean?"

"I do," Eric shook his head. "Yeah, I do."

Continuing to look at his coach, Vince responded by also nodding his head. Then the two continued the remainder of the ride to Austin in silence, as they both were preoccupied with their own thoughts.

Vince didn't trust anyone. He quickly learned that fact as part of the _'code of the streets,'_ if one wanted to survive. However, when it came to Eric, Vince had to admit to himself that, other than an incident of his coach unwittingly giving his Mom a twenty dollar bill to score a high in exchange for information of his whereabouts and another of forfeiting a Lions game, his coach had always come through for him. Even more noteworthy in Vince's book, his coach even apologized for the error of his ways in both of those incidents.

The more Eric tried to convince Vince to trust the Bureau, the more he was trying to convince himself. It wasn't so much a matter of trusting the TBI. Of course, he didn't trust the Bureau ... not at this point. It was simply a matter of having no other choice. In that regard, he found himself in the same boat as Vince and Billy Riggins.

Upon their arrival at the TBI building in office, they were met by Field Agent Larsen. Rather than take a statement from Vince in an interrogation room, the Agent decided to make things a little more informal due to Vince's age. He set up an area in their Break Room and led Vince and Eric to a corner, secluded table.

"Can I get you two a sandwich? Something to drink?" Agent Larsen asked. "We have ham and swiss in the fridge and about any kind of soda you could want."

Vince and Eric said yes to the food, and Vince asked for an orange soda. Eric asked for coffee. After bringing food and beverages, the Agent took a seat and the three began to casually eat their lunch.

"Your coach here tells me your Dad's not around and your Mom's not well," Agent Larsen began. "That's the only reason I'm allowing him to be here."

"Uh, yeah," Vince responded. "My mom, uh, she's pretty fresh out of rehab. And my Dad ... My Dad's in prison."

This was news to Eric. He had always wondered and maybe even suspected Vince's father was incarcerated, but he never wanted to pry. Vince had always appeared to have a chip on his shoulder, and this disclosure went a long way in explaining why.

"So, why was your mother in rehab?' the Agent continued. "Drugs? Alcohol?"

"Heroin," Vince was refreshingly frank.

"Where'd she get her smack?" Agent Larsen kept the ball rolling.

Vince shrugged. "Where she could find it. Anyone can get what they need at Carroll Park."

The Agent scribbled notes on a tablet. After a moment, Agent Larsen radically changed the subject. "Why don't you tell me what happened to Calvin Brown."

Vince looked up at Eric. "He was killed. Shot dead."

"I heard you were there," the Agent looked Vince straight in the eye.

Looking back at Eric, Vince said, "You heard wrong. I knew Calvin. But I wasn't there."

"Then, who was?" the Agent persisted.

Vince gave a dead stare to the Agent. "If I wasn't there, how would I know?"

"Oh, I don't know ... talk on the street. Maybe something you heard at school," the Agent went on. "You all called me to come down here on a Saturday. Why don't you just cut the crap and tell me, why am I here, kid?" The impatience in the Agent's voice was instant and astounding.

"Well, uh," Vince began, "I was approached to do something for, uh, you know ... a gangster."

Regaining his composure, the Agent tried to prod Vince along.

Looking down, Vince said, "My Mom had to go to rehab. She couldn't wait to go on the State program. She would've died with the six month wait. So, I had no choice but to put her in a private rehab ... and that costs a lot of money. Word on the street was that I needed money. So, I was contacted and given a way I could help my Mom. There wasn't anyone but me to help her."

"Okay," the Agent continued taking notes. "Go on."

"I was given a gun and taken around to, you know, shake people down who didn't pay up," Vince continued. "But when it came right down to it ... I couldn't do it. I couldn't hurt someone."

Met with silence as the Agent continued scribbling notes, Vince went on. "When I couldn't do it, I told them I wanted out. But there's no such thing as getting out. So, I came to talk to Coach."

The Agent looked over at Eric, who indicated that was correct by shaking his head.

"Who, Vince?" the Agent asked. "Who took you to shake people down? I need a name."

Vince took in a deep breath. "The guy's name's Kennard."

"Kennard? What's the last name?" Agent Larsen asked.

"I don't know," Vince replied. "I only know him as Kennard."

"When you went to shake these people down, you say you were you armed?" the Agent asked.

After a beat of silence, Vince said, "Yeah."

Agent Larsen didn't miss a beat. "Alright ... where's your weapon, Vince?"

Taking in another breath, Vince reached inside his Panther jacket pocket and pulled out a revolver, carefully handing it over to the Agent.

Eric's eyes became large. He tried very hard to contain the surprise at seeing his quarterback with another gun in his possession.

After the Agent secured the gun, he asked. "One more thing, Vince. Your coach said that there have been others on the team who have been approached by this gang ... You know, recruited for illegal activities."

"On the team, at the high school," Vince nodded. "It's no secret to most anyone who attends East Dillon. I mean, the teachers don't know, the principal doesn't know. But lots of students do."

The Agent spent the next several minutes asking Vince to write down the names of persons he believed had been approached for gang activity. Then, Agent Larsen looked over at Eric. "Do you think you could find a secure place for Vince to stay for the next 72 hours? And he'll also need to stay out of school, stay off the streets, until you hear from me."

"Coach, I can't leave my Mom," Vince shook his head in disagreement with this whole idea.

Eric looked at his quarterback. "How about you and your Mom come and stay with us for a few days?"

"You mean it?" Vince needed to have what he thought he heard reconfirmed.

Eric shook his head. "Yeah, let me call my wife and give her a heads up." Eric was going to need Tami's help in pulling this off. So much for not becoming more involved.


	15. Chapter 15

Title: Forward Progress (15/18)

Author: Romantique

Email:

Classification: Eric/Tami Drama/Angst

Rating: T for some language and a little suggestive sexual activity.

Summary: MAJOR SPOILERS from Season 4. Tami and Eric have been put through the ringer this season. Wouldn't you love to see them smile? At least for awhile? This fic takes place at the end of Season 4 before Season 4 airs on NBC.

Disclaimer: MAJOR SPOILERS from Season 4.

Legal: These characters do not belong to me. I'm just a fan and have not made a dime. Please email me to obtain permission to post.

When Eric stepped into the hallway of the State Building to call Tami and inform her they would be having a couple of houseguests for the next few days, their discussion immediately turned to logistics.

"Where is everyone going to sleep, Eric?" Tami asked, taking a break from doing the weekend laundry so that she could concentrate on their conversation. There was a slight 'put upon' tone in her voice. "This house is great for entertaining," she said, "but we still have only three bedrooms, Hon."

Overhearing her parents' conversation of needing space for company, Julie gladly volunteered. "I can go stay with Devin, no problem."

Overhearing his oldest daughter in the background, Eric quickly responded, trying to keep his voice down low. "No, I don't want Julie stayin' anywhere right now. She needs to stick close to home and to her normal routine." Nervously scratching his head, Eric tried to solve the problem he had just created for his wife. "Can't we just pull out the inflatable mattress and set it up in the livin' room? It's not like we use that room much, anyway. Besides, I don't think they're really gonna care where they sleep."

"Well ... I don't know about that," Tami said, considering the appropriateness of a mother sleeping in the same room with her nearly grown son, who also happened to be a student at their school. Her recent history with a retaliating parent had made her all the more thoughtful about combining her work life with her home life. "Y'all come home safely, and let me figure out the sleeping arrangements."

"Hey, Babe?" Eric quickly interjected. "Before we hang up, there's somethin' else I need to ask you to do." He went on to explain what he wanted and then, he and Vince began their long drive back to the lake.

_Nearly two hours later ..._

Regina Howard took the bus, making two transfers in order to meet Tami Taylor outside of town. Once Tami was satisfied there was no one around, she pulled up her car closer to the bus stop and motioned for Vince's mother to get inside.

Stepping into the passenger side, as she closed the door and clicked on her seatbelt, the mother of her husband's quarterback asked very matter-of-factly, "Would you mind tellin' me what the hell is goin' on?"

Tami winced, as she put the car in "Drive," and began the short ride back to the lake. "I don't know details, Mrs. Howard. Vince and Eric might tell you more than I've been told. I do know that there's been some illegal activity around Dillon that's been going on for a long time; and there's some kind of an investigation happening. I believe there's going to be some arrests made, and you and Vince need to be in a safe place until that happens." She looked over at Vince's mother. "Ya'll will be safe with us."

"Are you tellin' me that my son is involved in somethin' illegal?" Regina was becoming distraught.

Tami looked over at her and gently placed her hand on the mother's arm. "No, Mrs. Howard. I'm not saying that at all. There have been a lot of kids in Dillon who have been approached by the gangs. I don't believe Vince has done anything wrong, but like so many others, I think he was approached."

Regina hung her head. "Oh, Lord, no. My Vince, he's such a fine young man. He's one of the good ones." She then, looked up at Tami. "I mean, he's not perfect." She put her hands up to her face. "I'm not one of those Mothers who thinks her kid is perfect, but in the end, my son weighs things out and usually does the right thing. And when he doesn't, he learns from his mistakes. Do you know what I mean?"

Nodding her head, Tami replied, "Yes, I do. My husband thinks the world of your son. And I'll tell you something about Eric ... He doesn't waste his time with kids if he doesn't see the good in them, that spark of good."

"Well, how long do we need to stay?" Regina asked. "I didn't bring anything with me ... I don't have any clothes. Could we go by my place so I can at least pick up a few things?"

Tami tried to be reassuring. "I have anything you could possibly need. I don't think it would be a good idea to return to your house. Eric made a point of telling me not to go back there." Seeing that her answer wasn't going to be satisfactory, she added, "Maybe Vince and Eric will go. They're on their way back to our house, now."

Regina looked up at Tami and tentatively shook her head in agreement. The rest of the ride was pretty quiet. When they arrived at the house, Tami ushered Regina inside and showed her around.

"It is so beautiful," Regina gasped as she saw the view of the lake from their living room window. "I need to thank you and your husband for puttin'up with us, Mrs. Taylor."

"Call me, Tami, please." Tami smiled. She thought to herself that this poor woman had no choice but to go with the flow. "I'm glad we're able to help y'all. Now, I didn't get a chance to go to the store today. Would you think bad of me if I just ordered some pizzas for dinner tonight?"

Regina laughed. "You're a workin' mother with so many responsibilities at the high school. I think pizza would be just fine. And please, call me Regina." She decided that this woman, the wife of her son's coach, was really a kick, and she had immediately put her at ease and made her feel comfortable in a very uncomfortable situation.

"Well, good, Regina," Tami smiled. "We order from Panther's Pizza. Now, what do you and Vince like on your pizzas?"

"My son ... he's kind of picky," Regina seemed embarrassed to admit it. "He doesn't like any vegetables ... won't touch them. Me? I like most anything, except anchovies. I really don't care for anchovies."

Tami laughed. "My daughter, Julie, she's a vegetarian. So, I understand about having a picky one in the house. And then, there's Eric. He likes the Meat Eater's Extravaganza. Sounds like he and Vince can split a large one." Then, Tami became very animated and she talked with her hands. "They have this Chicken Alfredo pizza with lots of roasted veggies that's really different, but it is so good. Would you like something like that?"

"I LOVE Alfredo sauce," Regina nodded with a smile. "That sounds perfect, Tami."

"Well, great!" Tami said. "We could make a salad to round things out. It's the only way I can make sure my meat eater gets some good nutrition."

Regina giggled while admitting, "I have to do the same thing with Vince."

And the two women began to see how much their guys had in common. Julie came in a few minutes later and introduced herself to Vince's mother.

"Mom, they called me in to work tonight," she said, already dressed in her Applebee's uniform. "And I'm all set up in Grace's room. She loves the idea that I'll be staying with her. She can sleep in the trundle."

"I bet she is happy about that, Big Sis," Tami smiled.

Before leaving the house, Julie brought her baby sister into the kitchen to her mother, where Tami was pouring a glass of wine for herself and offered a glass to Regina.

"Oh, no thank you," Regina said. "I'm just out of drug rehab. They don't want us touchin' alcohol, either."

"Oh, I'm so sorry," Tami was embarrassed at her own lack of sensitivity and turned to take her wine into the kitchen. "I don't know what I was thinking."

"No, Tami, please. It doesn't bother me," Regina reached out to stop her host. "I promise."

Tentatively, Tami turned toward Regina. "Are you sure? Because I feel kind of funny drinking in front of you."

"Don't feel funny in your own home," Regina reiterated. "You all just carry on like you always do when Vince and I aren't here. Otherwise, it's gonna be a long few days."

Tami, shook her head in agreement, but she still felt funny.

The two women went into the kitchen to begin working on the salad. While chopping vegetables for the salad, she handed her youngest a carrot stick. Later, Regina helped Tami set their table.

Not long after Julie left for work, the pizzas were delivered, and Eric and Vince came walking through the front door.

"Hey, Babe?" Eric called with Vince right behind him.

"Daddy!" screamed Gracie with a big smile on her face.

"In here," Tami called from the dining room. She and Regina were carrying the last of their various beverages to the table. "Hey," she said. "Are you guys hungry?" she lilted her voice with a smile.

"Yeah, I'm starvin'," Eric said, throwing his baseball cap to the coffee table in the living room like a Frisbee. "Hey," he smiled at Vince's mother. "How are you?" Then, he bent down and gave his youngest daughter, who was seated at the table in her booster seat, a kiss on the top of her blonde head.

After all the introductory pleasantries, he said, "Excuse me. I need to go and wash up after that long ride."

When Eric returned a few minutes later, he saw his wife walking around the table to Vince and offering some of his favorite pizza. Vince eagerly grabbed 3 big slices and transferred them to his plate.

"Whoa!" Eric gasped, as he took a seat across the table. "Why don't you have a little pizza there with your milk, Vince?"

Regina looked up, embarrassed by her son's behavior.

"What?" Vince smiled. "I could eat that whole pizza and not even blink."

"Well, you can't eat that whole pizza because that's _my_ pizza," Eric shot back. "How many of the Meat Lovers pizzas did you buy?" Eric turned to look up at his wife who was seated beside him.

"I ordered a large for the two of you," Tami answered.

"Oh, no," Coach shook his head, stood up, and grabbed for the nearby cordless phone. "That's not gonna work." Then, he shot a look back over at Vince. "You slow down and save me half of that pie, you hear?' he said firmly with his eyebrows now raised. "I'm orderin' us another one, an extra large, alright?"

"Alright, Coach," Vince nodded, reaching over to grab the last slice of his half.

"You like leftover pizza for breakfast?" Eric asked Vince while the phone rang in his ear.

"I LOVE leftover pizza for breakfast," Vince smiled at the thought.

"Well, hell. Then, I better order us a couple of 'em," Eric was serious.

Tami shook her head, smiling at Regina. And the two women started to laugh.

As Eric returned to the table after placing the order, he looked at the two women. "Now, what is so funny?" Eric scowled.

"You two are so much alike," Regina laughed, while Tami nodded her head in agreement.

"Alike? Who, me and this guy?" Eric pointed at Vince and seemed almost offended.

Vince glanced over at Eric. "I am nothing like you."

"There are worse people for you to model yourself after, than me," Eric countered back to his QB1. "And by the way, I want your ass up at 5 a.m. tomorrow. You and I are gonna go and run all this pizza off in the mornin', you hear?"

"Tomorrow's Sunday, Coach," Vince objected. "But alright. We'll run ... if you can even keep up with me."

"Oh, I'll keep up with you just fine, tough guy," Eric countered, biting into a slice of his own.

And Regina and Tami continued to laugh at these two, posturing vessels of testosterone seated before them.

Later, several hours after dinner and after Julie came home from work, Eric and Tami were lying in their living room on a made up air mattress.

"I still don't see why we had to give up our room for Vince and his mother," Eric scowled. "They would've been fine out here."

"I already explained it," Tami whispered, trying to soothe him.

"Well didn't you hear Vince's mother? She said not to go out of our way for them. I, for one, agree with her," he continued to scowl.

"It is inappropriate for her to be sharing a bed with her grown son," Tami calmly reiterated. "Giving her our room and Vince Julie's is the right thing to do ... the only thing to do. And besides, I moved the mattress underneath the picture window so we could stare up at the stars. It will be like camping out, without all the bugs." And she snuggled up close to her husband.

Eric looked up and out the big window. Tami had opened the drapes so they could look up at the sky. It was a clear, starry night.

"See? Isn't this nice?" Tami cooed softly in his ear, stroking his arm.

After a moment, his breathing began to slow as his body released its anger, and Eric reached out his arm as a pillow for his wife's head. "Yeah, it's a beautiful sky tonight, Babe. But this mattress is uncomfortable as hell." He continued to complain.

Tami stretched her long arm over her husband's chest and drew her face to his. Then, gazing into his moonlit eyes, she gave him one long, passionate kiss.

At the end of the kiss, Eric confessed, "As much as I want to, I don't think I can. There are too many people in this house." He paused for a beat and then, continued. "What if someone walked in on us? What if Vince, who is a _student_ walked in on us?"

Tami continued to stroke his chest and gently kissed his lips, again. "I just checked before coming to bed. Everyone is sound to sleep. We just need to have whisper sex." And she continued to plant soft little kisses down his neck. "Let me take your mind off this mattress," she spoke softly in between her kisses, as she continued to slowly make love to her husband.

With his eyes now closed, Eric's body responded to his wife's touch. "Whisper sex," he softly murmured, as a smile came over his face. He knew he would remember this for a long, long time.

_Monday ..._

Sunday had been a day of grocery shopping and getting ready for the work week, along with the promised 5 mile, early morning run for Eric and Vince.

The next morning, Tami, Eric, and Julie all went to school and Gracie to daycare, as if it was any other normal work day, leaving Vince and Regina to putter around their house. Unbeknownst to Tami, Regina decided she would repay the Taylor's kindness by cooking dinner for them.

Before the lunch period, Jess Merriweather popped her head into Tami's office. "Can I see you for a just a second?"

"Uh, sure," Tami looked up from her paperwork.

Jess began as she took a seat in front of Tami's desk. "I've been trying to find Vince Howard at school today. He's not answering his cell phone. He didn't come into work this weekend, and when I stopped by his house last night, there was no one home." With a look of dread on her face, she asked, "Do you know if he's alright?"

"Yeah, sweetie. He's alright," Tami tried to reassure the young girl. "He called Coach over the weekend and said he and his Mom were going out of town, probably for the week. I heard something about some kind of a family emergency."

Jess and Vince had become close over the past several months. "I'm surprised he didn't tell me." Jess had hurt in her eyes.

Trying to cover her tracks, Tami said, "They had to leave quickly. I wouldn't read too much into that."

"Really?" Jess questioned her, seeming somewhat surprised at her guidance counselor's response.

"Yeah, really," Tami nodded and then became tight lipped, observing Jess' reaction.

"Well, okay. Thank you, Mrs. Taylor," Jess said, only slightly reassured with the explanation.

"I'm sure he'll call you when he can," Tami once again tried to reassure the young girl. She could sense her unease.

"Yeah," Jess said. "Of course, he will."


	16. Chapter 16

Title: Forward Progress (16/18)

Author: Romantique

Email:

Classification: Eric/Tami Drama/Angst

Rating: T for some language.

Summary: MAJOR SPOILERS from Season 4. Tami and Eric have been put through the ringer this season. Wouldn't you love to see them smile? At least for awhile? This fic takes place at the end of Season 4 before Season 4 airs on NBC.

Disclaimer: MAJOR SPOILERS from Season 4.

Legal: These characters do not belong to me. I'm just a fan and have not made a dime. Please email me to obtain permission to post.

_Monday evening ..._

The past few days had been trying for Vince and Regina Howard. Tami had gone to the store and bought a few changes of clothing and underwear, along with some other items for both of them to get them by, and they were very grateful. Vince ran with his coach at 5 a.m. each morning. The young man thought he was probably doing his coach a favor by exercising with him first thing every day. After his injury from the prison, Eric was running slower than he could before the injury. He did not share that information with Vince, so Vince just thought his coach was getting older.

From Eric's viewpoint, running was a way to get Vince outside the house once a day and run off a lot of pent up energy and frustration to ward off cabin fever.

While everyone else was out of the house, free, the mother and son watched a movie and spent some of the afternoon out on the porch, enjoying the view.

"It's so peaceful out here at the lake," Regina said. "Reminds me of rehab."

"You doin' okay, momma? You know, out of your element?" Vince raised an eyebrow.

"I'm doing just fine," Regina smiled at her son. "Your coach and his family ... these are some real nice people you've got yourself surrounded with, son. I'm so proud of you. They seem to really care about you."

"That's the kind of people they are, momma," Vince explained. "They care about _everyone_. But yeah, I lucked out on meetin' Coach Taylor, that's for sure."

"He really does care about _you_," she said. "I can tell."

"Coach is one of these people that if I do something for him, he does something for me. It's a two way street," Vince explained. "But yeah, I trust him. He's there for me and for all the guys on the team. He's a good guy."

Taking a sip of her iced tea, Regina said wistfully, "He's a good, male role model for you ... almost like a father figure."

"Yeah," Vince smirked with a bit of smile. "A loud-mouth, tough, always yellin' in your face father figure to about 30 guys. But I finally learned where I stand with him. He's hard, but he's fair. He's teaching me a lot about football and strategy. He's learned to trust me." Then, Vince's face softened a bit. "You trust me, momma. But he's the first adult outside the family who's ever trusted me when nobody else would. It's cool. I don't want to ever let you down. I don't want to let him down, either."

"A two way street," Regina said wistfully. "And I don't think he ever wants to let you down." After a few moments of silence she said, "I think I'm going to go inside and start dinner. Want to help?"

"Naw. Coach said I was welcome to watch some of his game films," Vince replied. "There's a few Panther games from this season I would love to see." Then, he turned to his mom. "Don't forget that Julie doesn't eat cow or sow or anything that's not organic, and Coach and me ... we don't eat anything lean or green."

"I won't forget," Regina smiled at her son. "I've got an idea."

For dinner, Regina made a pasta dish with everyone in mind, placing the sausage, the sauce, the vegetables, and the cheese in different containers so that each person could make his or her own dish to their own liking. She also made a big salad and garlic bread to round out the meal.

Soon, the Taylors were home, the table was set, and dinner was served.

"This sauce is soooo good," Julie smiled after taking a first bite. "What's in it?"

"It's the jar sauce ya'll buy," Regina said. "I just added some onions, some garlic, mushrooms, and basil to it. Oh, and a squeeze of a lemon to brighten everything up."

"Well, I _really_ like it," Julie smiled with approval.

"I appreciate you doing this," Tami smiled. "And I can tell the guys are happy. They haven't said a word since we sat down at the table."

Julie, Tami, and Regina looked up at Eric and Vince, who both had their mouths happily stuffed full of sausage, cheese, and pasta.

"Uh, Vince, honey," Tami said in between bites of her salad. "Jess Merriweather stopped by my office today to see if I knew where you were. She's worried about you. I was caught off guard and ended up telling her a bit of white lie. I told her you all had a family emergency and would be away for about a week." Tami looked sheepish. "But I think maybe you should give her a call, you know? Check in with her."

"I will," Vince nodded. "Thanks."

"Be careful what you tell her," Eric said, as he went for seconds.

"Yep," Vince shook his head in acknowledgment.

"Regina, this is very good." Eric smiled as he returned from the kitchen with his plate full and another beer in his hand. "Takin' nothin' away from my wife's cookin' ... which she knows I _love_ ... this meal is fantastic."

"It was my pleasure," Regina said.

After dinner, Coach and Tami cleaned up the dishes, telling Regina that she cooked so no, she doesn't clean up, too. She was impressed to see their family work like a team, something she had never seen before. Vince went into the other room and called Jess. He decided it best to continue on with the story Tami had told her. Jess seemed satisfied hearing it straight from him.

After clean up, at Vince's request, Eric and Vince retired to his office to watch games films and talk football. Tami was glad to have another female in the house to talk to. Julie later joined them to talk about college and some ideas and insights for Vince's future. For the first time in her guidance counselor career, Tami could see a lot of her husband in this unlikely young man with such a different background. It would not surprise her at all if Vince went pro, but it would also not surprise her if he ended up coaching ball, just like Eric. What was clear was that they both loved football.

As pleasant as the past few days had been, each member of this unlikely group, sans the baby, were very aware that they were merely passing time ... all making the best of a tough situation.

Eric was increasingly aware that while he and his family were isolated from other parties involved in this investigated, so were Tim and Billy Riggins. He couldn't help but wonder how they were doing through all this. He wondered about the affect this was having on Dallas Tinker and some of his other East Dillon players. For Eric and Tami, it was becoming increasingly more difficult not to answer their friends and colleagues when asked, "Are you okay?" Of course they weren't okay, but they couldn't say anything to anyone. Eric couldn't confide in Buddy right now. The Taylors were pretty much on their own, and as the days waned, it was beginning to take its toll.

_Tuesday morning ..._

Eric and Vince were up and at 'em early and to once again run the perimeter of the lake as the sun began to rise. After a little initial bantering, the two would fall into a pattern of running in silence.

Still favoring his side that had been sliced during the altercation at the prison, Eric noticed running was becoming a bit easier each day. At about the half way mark of the 5 mile runs, the tightness in the muscles around the scar would let go, and he would begin to feel pretty good. At the point when the discomfort subsided, his mind could go off, relieving some of the mental tension of waiting for something to happen to break in their imposed exile.

They ran into the last stretch towards the house when the noticed the police were near their end of the lake along with a couple of trucks. Winded, Vince pointed at the activity.

"Yeah, I see," Eric panted, now stopped and grabbing his knees while still watching.

After a few moments of cooling down, Eric and Vince secreted themselves behind some shrubbery and continued to watch the activities at the lake. After a time, they saw a couple of divers go down into the murky water. Later, the two divers surfaced and then, were given some heavy cables from the shore line which they each took and dove back down into the water. When they re-surfaced, they exited the lake while one of the trucks began to reel in the cable, pulling a rusted car skeleton out of the water. Eric recognized it was near the same location he and Julie had seen Billy Riggins dump something large into the water, many weeks before. The carcass of metal was then lowered onto a flatbed truck.

Then, the two divers went back into the waters with metal detectors. After several dives, Eric looked at his watch.

"I need to be headin' back," Eric said in a low voice.

"Wait," Vince said, hitting his Coach's arm with the back of his hand, as his eyes remained focused on the divers. "They found something."

Eric looked over to see one of the divers holding the remnants of a wet paper bag. The gloved diver pulled out what appeared to be gun.

"Crap," Eric exhaled under his breath. "That's where I got rid of the bag you brought me."

Eric had thrown it in the opposite end of the lake. The currents must have moved it, unless there were other guns in the lake.

Vince'e eyes became very large, and he held his breath, continuing to watch the police. After he collected his thoughts, he asked, "Did you have anything to do with the car they pulled out of the water?"

"Naw, of course not," Eric shook his head.

"Good. Then, there's nothing to worry about," Vince nodded his head. After another moment, he looked over at the uneasy look still on Eric's face and said, "Coach. Look. You know nothing, and I know nothing about that bag I brought you. You never saw it. Understood?"

Looking his quarterback straight in the eye, Eric stared at him for a moment and finally agreed. "Understood ... Now, let's get back to the house."

Eric was very quiet during the drive to the high school with Tami. Both had noticed and discussed the police activity around the lake earlier that morning and decided to go on with their lives as normally as possible, while Vince and his mother continued to stay secluded at their home. As usual, Julie drove to Devin's house to pick her up before continuing on to school.

With his face propped up on his hand closest to the driver's window, Eric finally broke the silence. "I'm about to tell you something that you are immediately gonna unknow as soon as I say it."

Turning to her husband, Tami tightened her face and took in a deep breath. "Alright."

"That bag ... that bag I told you was gonna disappear?" Eric turned to make quick eye contact with his wife. Then, diverting his eyes back to the road in front of him. "I think the divers may have found it this mornin'."

Tami gasped as her had when up to her mouth.

"Listen to me carefully, Tami. This is _very_ important," Eric enunciated every word. "You don't know anything about any bag. I don't know anything about any bag. And Vince doesn't know anything any bag. Or anything _inside _of any bag." After a moment, he looked over at her again. "Did you hear me?"

Tami looked frightened but she understood. "Yes."

"Good," Eric nodded, his jaw was tight. After another pause, he continued. "Vince and I had a similar discussion along the same lines early this mornin'. He doesn't know that you know anything, and it will stay that way. Now, unknow anything you ever knew on this subject, and Vince and I will do the same. Not another word ... ever."

Slowly and silently, Tami nodded her head in agreement. She just sat there looking down, her face still looking very distraught.

Eric saw her and reached over the seat to take her hand into his. He gave her hand a strong, reassuring squeeze. "Hold on, Babe." Eric said in a low, reassuring voice that matched his squeeze. "It's all gonna be over soon."

"Thank God," Tami exhaled, returning the squeeze to her husband's hand. Holding onto her husband's hand, she leaned back into her seat for the remainder of the ride to school.

The school day dragged on for all the Taylors. When it was finally over, they all headed home, and when they arrived, they were greeted by the aroma of ginger and oriental spices. Regina had made a vegetable Thai dish with coconut milk, lemon grass, and brown rice with meat on the side.

"Wow, this is incredible," Tami said to her house guest. "Can I convince you to give me the recipe?"

"Yeah, Mom. This is so much better than the Thai restaurant in town," Julie smiled. "You did it again, Regina."

Vince smiled with pride. "My mom can cook."

"Yes, she sure can," Eric smiled and joined in the love fest.

Regina was embarrassed by the onslaught of attention. "Thank you," she was shyly able to get out.

Just as they were finishing their meal, the doorbell rang.

"I'll get it," Eric said, excusing himself from the table.

He opened to the front door to find Virgil Merriweather standing there.

"I'm sorry to bother you at home, Coach Taylor," the big man shifted his weight from foot to foot. "Have you seen Vince Howard?"

"Uh," Coach was really caught off guard.

Before Eric could utter another word, Virgil continued. "Look, my daughter, Jess ... she didn't come home from school today. And then, I got a call from a local thug who said he has her."

"What?" Eric was trying to process what he had just been told.

A split second later, Vince came up behind Eric. "What about Jess? Someone has her?" Vince was getting upset.

Virgil shot a hard look at Vince, and so did Eric. There was an awkward moment of silence.

"I think you need to come inside where we can talk," Eric said, opening the door wider for Mr. Merriweather to come inside.

By now, as they walked into the house, Virgil caught a glance of Regina Howard.

"I thought Jess told me that you all were out of town?" Virgil was still glaring at Vince. "What the hell is goin' on?"

Eric extended his hand to the big man's shoulder, and with wide eyes, he said. "Virgil, you need to sit down." And he directed him to sit in his recliner.

Vince and Eric took a seat beside him, as Eric began to explain a little about the investigation and why the Howards were staying at their house.

"If anything happens to my daughter because of you," Virgil shot a look of sheer anger towards Vince.

"Whoa," Eric said. "This is not Vince's fault. He's tryin' to do the right thing. Now as far as Jess is concerned, I think we need to call 911."

"No!" Virgil's loud booming voice thundered though the house. Gracie began crying in the other room. Seeing what he had done, Virgil then said, "I'm sorry. I didn't mean to shout. But no cops. He said he'd kill her if I called the cops." There were tears forming in Virgil's eyes.

"I understand," Eric stood and put his hand on Virgil's shoulder to steady him and give him some comfort. "Did the guy that called you say what he wanted?"

"Yeah," Virgil looked up. "He wants Vince for Jess."

"Was this guy's name Kennard?" Vince wanted to know.

"Yeah," Virgil was surprised Vince knew. And then, he wasn't.

"No, son," Regina came into the room. "I know what you're thinking."

"Mom. It's Jess. I can't let anything happen to her," he pleaded.

"Nothin' is gonna happen to anyone," Eric said. "Virgil. What if I told you the TBI was involved in this investigation? There's a Special Agent who I could call and could be here tonight to help get Jess to safety."

"I dunno," Virgil said. "He said no cops."

"If that was my daughter," Eric took a big swallow at the thought, "If that was Julie, I would talk to the Special Agent. Really, I would."

"As her mother, I would do the same," Tami interjected, now joining them in the room. "It's your best chance of having a good outcome. You can't trust this guy who has your daughter. You can't afford to trust him."

"They are right about that," Vince said to his girlfriend's father. "Kennard _cannot_ be trusted."

Virgil Merriweather, Big Mary, searched the faces of everyone in the room. Finally, he looked at Eric. "Alright. Go ahead and call the Agent."


	17. Chapter 17

Title: Forward Progress (17/18)

Author: Romantique

Email:

Classification: Eric/Tami Drama/Angst

Rating: T for some language and some suggestive sexual situations.

Summary: MAJOR SPOILERS from Season 4. Tami and Eric have been put through the ringer this season. Wouldn't you love to see them smile? At least for awhile? This fic takes place at the end of Season 4 before Season 4 airs on NBC.

Disclaimer: MAJOR SPOILERS from Season 4.

Legal: These characters do not belong to me. I'm just a fan and have not made a dime. Please email me to obtain permission to post.

_That same evening at the Taylor home ..._

After a long, anxious 2 hour wait where Virgil Merriweather changed his mind about this plan at least 3 or 4 times, TBI Field Agent Kenneth Larsen finally arrived at the Taylor's house. Following brief introductions, the Agent quickly got down to business. Virgil gave the Agent all the information he had regarding the phone call about his daughter's abduction on her way home from school. Then, Vince filled in any blanks he could about the whereabouts of Kennard's usual hang-outs, along with a description of his vehicle.

"You did the right thing by calling me," Larsen said, trying to reassure the kidnap victim's distraught father.

"That remains to be seen," Virgil said, towering over the Agent.

"We're going to need recent pictures of your daughter for the other Field Agents," Larsen said to Virgil.

"Of course. I have some at home," Virgil replied.

"Okay, I'll follow you," Agent Larsen said.

"There are lots of pictures of Jess from this school year on our high school's website," Julie efficiently offered the Agent. "I could go and print you out some copies of them right now."

"Fast thinking, young lady," Larsen said. "That would save us a lot of time. Could you also save them in a .zip file? That way, I could send them to my field office for immediate electronic distribution."

"Can do. C'mon Vince," Julie motioned to him. "Help me quickly pick out the ones that will do the most good." The poor guy looked like he was about to crawl out of his skin in frustration, and it seemed as if he needed something constructive to do. "Let's go do that now."

As much as he wanted to stay near the Agent so he wouldn't miss anything, he followed Julie back to Eric's office to print those pictures.

Later, after the Agent and Virgil left, everyone went to their respective rooms. It had been another long night.

On this night lying on the air mattress, it was Tami who was visibly stressed and preoccupied with private thoughts from somewhere else. She stared aimlessly up at the ceiling in the darkness. The moonlight illuminated her face.

Eric offered his arm to her, but she didn't seem to even notice. Then, he began to methodically rub her arm. "Babe," he whispered in her ear. "Are you okay?"

"No, Eric. I am not okay," she said, still continuing to stare up at the ceiling. Tears began to well up in her eyes. "I'm afraid that something bad is going to happen to you, to our family, to people we care about."

He turned over and reached for her and scooped her up in his arms. "Look at me," he said with a sense of command in his voice. "I'm not gonna let anything happen to any of us."

"You promise?" she whispered.

He leaned over her face. "I promise," he murmured and kissed her forehead, then the tip of her nose. "I promise," he repeated, and then, he gently kissed her mouth.

"I love you ... so much," Tami whispered in between kisses, caressing his face. Her eyes were still filled with tears.

Eric continued kissing his wife with a growing fervor. Tonight, it was his turn to take her mind off of things.

With some time, Eric lovingly brought them to the brink and back again, before finally sending them both over the edge. Afterwards, they lay there holding on to one another's shaking body, breathless and spent.

All of a sudden, Eric heard a noise coming off the living room in the foyer. He leapt off the air mattress, quickly stepping into his pajama bottoms and throwing on his t-shirt.

"I'll be right back," he whispered to Tami who sat straight up in the bed.

Quietly, he stepped into the living room.

"Vince!" Erin shouted, racing barefoot toward the front door of the house. "No, you are _not_ leavin' this house!"

"Coach, I've gotta help Jess!" he argued, reaching for the door knob.

Eric grabbed for Vince's arm to stop him from turning the knob. Vince hauled back his right arm and punched his coach in the abdomen with his fist as hard as he could. As the punch connected to the same area where Eric had been previously injured, he suddenly saw stars. With the wind knocked out of him, he flew backwards off his feet and onto the floor.

"Eric!" Tami screamed as she ran into the room.

A horrified Vince looked up as he knew he was identified by his coach's wife, something kids of the streets learned at an early age. He gasped, "Sorry, Mrs. Coach. I gotta do this." Then, he took off, out the front door.

"Eric!" Tami ran over to her husband who was on the ground, doubled over in pain. Her greatest fear had just come to pass.

"Call Agent Larsen," he managed to get the words out.

"But, Honey," she protested.

"Call him ... NOW!" he again managed to get out the words.

By this time, Julie and Regina had entered the room to find out what all the commotion was about.

"Dad!" Julie shouted and ran over to her father.

"I'm alright," Eric nodded and insisted, as he grabbed his side and tried to stand up on all fours in the darkness.

Julie helped to steady him, as he slowly stood upright. Then, she helped to lead him to the nearest chair and turned on a nearby lamp. Regina was intently listening to the conversation Tami was having with the TBI Agent. At the same time, she looked over as Julie pulled up her father's t-shirt which revealed a large, angry red swelling in the area over Eric's ribs with the long red scar from all his recent stitches across his side.

Looking down at his injured side, Eric quickly asked Julie, "Bring me some frozen vegetables out of the freezer?" He was still breathing harder than normal. Although he wouldn't admit it, he was in pain.

"I'll get it," Regina said, feeling totally helpless just standing there. She returned a minute later with a frozen bag of peas and handed them to Julie who took them to her father.

Eric placed the freezing cold bag over his ribs. The sudden cold made him straighten up and hold in a gasp.

"Agent Larsen told all of us to stay put," Tami announced as she came back into the room and walked straight toward Eric. "They have that Kennard guy under surveillance, so the Agent appreciated the heads up. He said they'll have time to come up with some kind of a diversion before Vince gets there."

"Oh, my God," Regina cried. "Did Vince do this to you?"

"Yeah," Eric said. "But he didn't know I was injured a couple of months ago." he explained, while Tami examined his abdomen. "If I hadn't been injured, that punch wouldn't be any big deal."

"Babe, what if your ribs are broken?" Tami asked.

"They're not broken," he said. "I wouldn't be able to breathe." He took a pause. "It just hurt because the nerves aren't all the way healed up in there."

"But what if they're cracked or there's bleeding in there?" she said, frantically. "I really think you should go to the ER and let them do some imaging."

"You heard what Agent Larsen said," Eric reminded her. "He said to stay put." A moment later, Eric looked up into Tami's blue eyes. He had just made love to this woman and promised her that he wouldn't let anything happen. "Geez," Eric shook his head, letting out a maniacal little laugh, the one he always gave when he felt trapped by her. "You're not gonna let this go, are you?"

Tami stood before him, speechless, with her arms defiantly folded in front of her.

"Alright," he said in resignation. "Help me get some clothes on, and let's get this over with."

"Regina, would you please stay here with Jules and Gracie?" Tami asked.

"Of course, I will," she said.

And a few minutes later, Tami helped Eric out the door and into her car, and she drove him to the Emergency Room.

_Early the next morning ..._

After a CT scan came back negative for internal bleeding and an X-ray was negative for broken bones, Eric was released from the hospital with a prescription for pain medication and a follow up visit with his family physician. Relieved and satisfied her husband was going to be okay, Tami drove up the driveway to their home where she noticed a couple of extra cars, one of which appeared to be an undercover law enforcement vehicle.

As she and Eric made their way into their house, they were welcomed by the smell of freshly brewed coffee and bacon. Holding onto his painful side, Eric slowly made his way towards the kitchen with Tami right behind him to find Virgil and Jess, Regina and Vince, and Agent Larsen in various stages of cooking a pancake breakfast. Gracie was sitting in her booster seat at the counter while her big sister poured juice.

Virgil looked up at the sight of Eric and Tami and bluntly said, "It's over, and everyone is okay." He grabbed hold of his daughter and hugged her tight.

"Everyone that is, except for Kennard," Vince said. "SWAT got him. He's dead."

"Yeah, good riddance," Jess echoed. Jess, who was a compassionate as they come, held no compassion for the ugly violence that was Kennard.

"Jess, Honey, are you alright?" Tami asked, as she pulled out a bar stool for her husband to sit on.

"Yes, ma'm. I mean it was scary and horrible ... but I'm fine," Jess smiled and hugged her dad again. "I never gave up hope that I would be okay."

"How are you?" Agent Larsen asked Eric.

"I'm gonna be just fine," he said, taking a cup of coffee from Julie. "Thank you, Sweetie."

"They're right," the Agent continued, approaching Eric at the breakfast bar. "It's all over. We were in the process of building a tight case against Kennard Tipton with a gun we pulled from the lake. It was used in a murder outside of Dillon a little over a year ago. But now, that's not going to be necessary. That murder case is now officially closed. There are a few other minor arrests to be made in town, but the stronghold of this Dallas based gang has been extinguished. And no, Coach. None of the arrests are from East Dillon High."

Eric gave a tight lipped smile of relief and nodded his head. "That's good ... good news indeed."

"Well, I've got a few loose ends to tie up in town before I return to Austin," the Agent said. "Call me if you need anything, okay?" he said to Eric. "Thanks for the coffee," he said to the others.

"How 'bout I walk you out?" Eric said. "Slowly," he added as he gradually stood up from the stool with a wince.

On the way to the front door, Eric asked, "What about the Riggins brothers?"

"Well," the Agent stopped at the door, speaking in a low voice, "Billy Riggins no longer has to testify against Kennard. And as for his brother, his future will be up to the Prison Board. But I can guarantee you that there will be no more gang activity over at the prison. Give me another 24 hours to finish up with Billy. Then, you are free to contact either one of the Riggins boys."

Eric extended his hand. "Thank you."

Shaking the coach's hand, Agent Larsen said, "Go and win your season next year, Coach."

Eric smiled. "That's the plan."

After the Agent left the house, Eric returned to the kitchen. The mood in the house was drastically different than the one of the past several days and weeks. It was one of a celebration, and it was just about decided that everyone would be late for school today, even Tami. As he slowly climbed back up on the barstool, Vince approached him.

"Coach," Vince awkwardly began. "I didn't mean to hurt you."

"Look," Eric stopped him. "You didn't know I had been injured there before."

"No, I didn't know," Vince said. "No wonder you were running kinda funny."

Eric flashed him a look.

Vince immediately backed it up. "No, man. I mean I have a lot of respect for you, and I just want to apologize for hitting you," Vince said. "You could've pressed charges against me, and I know that. I shouldn't have done it."

"You know what, Vince?" Eric said. "I don't like it that you hit me, but if that had been Tami or one of my daughters where Jess was ... I would've done the same thing to you if you had tried to stop me." After a pause, he added, "I'm not sayin' what you did was right, but I understand why you did it."

Vince nodded.

"And besides, you're gonna be carryin' my gear for me until my side heals up again," Eric added with a look of all seriousness, "and you're not gonna complain about it, are you?"

Vince looked up at him with a slight grin on his face. "I'll carry your books for you."

Eric huffed. "I said _gear_."

"And that little purse you carry," Vince went on.

"That's not a _purse_," Eric snarled. "It's a _messenger bag_, you idiot."

"I dunno," Vince shook his head. "It sure looks like a purse to me."

About that time, Tami and Regina were chuckling again over these two. Soon Julie and Jess joined in and then ... the loud boisterous howl of Virgil joined in the mix.

Even Vince started to laugh.

"Stop it," begged Eric. "I can't laugh. Damn it, it hurts," he smiled, trying as hard as he could to stifle a laugh of his own. As much as he hated to admit it, this smart ass kid was funny. For the first time in years, Vince was free ... free from the threat of gang control. And he was taking great pleasure in sowing his oats a little.

After they all enjoyed the joke at Eric's expense, Virgil dished up breakfast for everyone. Tami hugged on Eric while he held her hand, and they enjoyed the very low key morning with new friends. It was the first time since they had bought this house where it was actually being used to entertain, and it felt good.

The only thing that was missing from the morning's levity was to find out if Tim was going to be okay.


	18. Chapter 18

Title: Forward Progress (18/18)

Author: Romantique

Email:

Classification: Eric/Tami Drama/Angst

Rating: T for some language and some suggestive sexual situations.

Summary: MAJOR SPOILERS from Season 4. Tami and Eric have been put through the ringer this season. Wouldn't you love to see them smile? At least for awhile? This fic takes place at the end of Season 4 before Season 4 airs on NBC.

Disclaimer: MAJOR SPOILERS from Season 4.

Legal: These characters do not belong to me. I'm just a fan and have not made a dime. Please email me to obtain permission to post.

_Note: Many apologies for the delay in completing this fic. Real life got in the way and then, I had a hard time bridging the way I wanted it to end. But as so often happens in writing, it finally came to me, and I hope you feel satisfied with the ending. I did. I left it open for a sequel, some day. Thanks much for the feedback. It's manna to a fic writer! :)_

_The following Thursday evening ..._

After waiting the requisite 24 hours, Eric contacted Billy Riggins and was relieved to find out that Tim was being transferred to a half-way house about an hour north of San Antonio to serve out the remainder of his sentence.

A couple of weeks into his recovery from his surprise altercation with Vince, Eric made up his mind he wanted to see Tim. At Tami's insistence, Eric convinced Buddy to drive him out there. Eric's side was coming along nicely, but his wife was not about to let him take any more chances. Visiting hours were more lenient at the new facility, and the two men left directly after school. Once they arrived, they were directed to an area where they were scanned and searched for weapons and contraband. After they gained entrance, Eric couldn't help but notice that this facility's reception area was noticeably _'homier'_ looking than the prison's visiting area, and both Eric and Buddy were allowed to enter at the same time.

After a few moments, Tim came walking into the room dressed in street clothes: his trademark jeans, t-shirt, and flip flops. His hair had begun to grow out, but it was still quite short. Tim smiled when he saw who his visitors were.

"Tim. How are you?" Eric smiled broadly while giving one of his favorite sons a _'man hug.'_

"Coach," Tim returned the hug and gave his old football coach a pat square on the back. Then, he looked up. "Mr. Garrity." And Tim extended his hand, revealing quite a scar he had on his arm.

Taking Tim's hand, Buddy said, "I think it's about time you called me Buddy, don't you think?" And Buddy flashed a smile.

"That might take some getting used to on my part," still shaking hands, Tim gave a slight grin. "But thanks. I'd like that."

"Have you heard from Lila?" Buddy asked.

Tim shook his head. "She writes every once in awhile. I got a note from her a few weeks ago. I owe her a letter."

After a lull in the conversation, Eric changed the subject. "So, how long have you been here?"

Tim directed them to the sofa, and they all took a seat.

"About 3 weeks now," Tim said. "I don't know how to thank you, both of you, for what you did for me. This place compared to the prison? It's like night and day."

"How so?" Eric asked.

Tim looked around. "Well, besides the obvious, more relaxed setting, I don't have to watch my back here. No one bothers me. A couple of the guys here are pretty cool. And, there's someone here who works with me on my plans after leaving here."

Eric raised his eyebrows with interest. "Really? Have you got some ideas about what you'd like to do?"

"Well, there's always working on cars," Tim said. "But there's got to be more to life. I'm starting to think of ways I can ... you know ... give back."

Eric tightened his smile and shook his head. "That would be a great thing to do."

"Yeah, and I haven't had a drink since I turned myself in six months ago," Tim announced. "I joined AA since coming here. I'm an alcoholic, just like my Dad. I _can't _drink anymore, and I know that now."

Eric reached over and patted Tim on the shoulder. "Son, I'm proud of you."

"You know what?" Tim asked his former coach. Then, he stated in all sincerity, "I'm sort of proud of myself."

Eric looked Tim right in the eye and gave him another tight smile. "Well, you should be."

Looking down, Tim nodded in his shy way. "I also want to thank you for what you did for my brother," Tim looked up at Eric, "for the sake of my nephew." Tim then took his fist brought it up to his own chest and proceeded to tap the area of his heart two solid times.

Suddenly becoming a little choked up, this time it was Eric who looked down, clasped his hands in front of him, and tightly clenched his jaw. Still looking down, he gave Tim a nod of acknowledgment.

For the first time, Buddy Garrity witnessed the special father figure relationship his friend Eric had with his daughter's former boyfriend. And again, for the first time, he began to see why Eric had been so unrelenting in his journey to help this young man. Buddy felt he was intruding on what should have been a very private moment between these two, very private men ... yet suddenly, he understood. No longer was he worried about Eric being taken in by Tim Riggins' charm. Tonight, Tim was more clear-headed and clear-eyed than Buddy had ever seen him.

_That night at the Lake House ..._

Lying in bed, Erin looked up at the ceiling, as Tami finished her nightly rituals of tooth brushing, applying hand cream, and placing a glass of water on the night stand before turning in to bed. When she was finished, she climbed in beside her husband and reached over to turn off the lamp on her nightstand. The moon shone its blue light through their bedroom window, illuminating their faces. Without breaking his stare at the ceiling, Eric reached over and held out his hand. Tami eagerly took it.

There. They were now plugged into one another, connected.

After a moment, Tami spoke softly, "Are you alright?"

"Hmmmm, yeah," mumbled her husband, still wide awake and deep in thought.

Tami rolled over, closer to him, careful not to shake the bed too much and hurt his still tender abdomen. "What are you thinking?"

"I talked to the Sheriff's department today. You know, Tim will be released in about six months, and you know about their _'Cops and Jocks' _program?" he began.

"Uh-huh," she nodded.

"Well, Tim's talkin' about wanting to give back to the community here, and we think we may have found a way for him to do just that," Eric said, as a smile came over his face. "You know, Tim's just a big kid. I think he's got some great coachin' skills and big heart. I dunno. It just seems like it might be a good fit for him."

"Why, Eric Taylor," Tami declared, a huge smile coming over her face, as well. "That is just perfect! I would have never pegged Tim for something like this, but you saw that in him. I just love the way you truly know the hearts of these guys you mentor. What other coach does that? "

"Well, Tim's gotta long way to go before something like this could work, but there is some fundin' for trainin' available and a real chance for him to make somethin' good out of his life," Eric squeezed his wife's hand.

Turning to him, she asked, "Does he know about this, yet?"

"Naw," he shook his head. "I thought I'd talk to him about it when I see him next week."

"Awwww, Honey," she gushed. "This is so great ... to think that this could actually be a life changing opportunity for Tim."

After a beat, Eric's tone changed. "You wanna know what else I'm thinkin'?"

"No, what?" she smiled.

Eric gave her hand another squeeze. "Looks like we bought this lake house just in time. I'm thinkin' school's gonna be out soon, and Julie will be graduatin'. Then, she'll be on her way to her first Habitat assignment. Lots of changes comin' fast." Then, he let out a deep sigh.

Tami snuggled in even closer, wrapping her long arms around his arm. "It does seem like things have calmed down around here, just in the nick of time. I'd really like for us to savor these last weeks of Jules' senior year. You know ... her Senior Prom, the Awards Banquet, the Senior party ... Graduation."

"Babe, please don't sign us up as chaperones for the Prom or the Senior party this year," Eric winced. "It'd be embarrasin' to Julie for us to be there. Would you promise me that?"

Tami chuckled. "You don't want to see your daughter at her Senior Prom?"

"I don't," Eric shook his head. "And I don't want to see my players out there on the dance floor ... bumpin' and grindin', either. I don't _ever_ want to see that."

"I'll promise," Tami said, "on one condition."

"What's that?" he turned his head towards her.

Then, she cooed, "If you promise to go on a date with me on Prom night, instead. We could go dancing, and do some bumping and grinding of our own." She leaned over, closer and began kissing the side of his face.

"I'll slow dance with you," he gave a little smile, as she lightly kissed the corner of his mouth.

"You will?" she asked and continued kissing his face.

Eric rolled over to face Tami, favoring his better side. "Yeah, I'll dance a _slow_ dance with you," he whispered into her ear with an emphasis on the word _"slow."_ And then, he gently took his wife's beautiful, moonlit face into his hands and proceeded to give her a luscious, sultry kiss on her mouth that was as slow and sweet and viscous as cold molasses pouring from a syrup pitcher on a winter's day.

The kiss eventually stole all the air from Tami's lungs, leaving her breathless. After all these years of marriage to this man, Eric Taylor could send her reeling.

fin-


End file.
